Welcome to The MUNY and to our production of Seussical!
Raymond J. Lee
Our day starts off with van pick-ups. Here is Kasey our awesome driver ready to get us to the MUNY. Shout out to the MUNY Transportation Department: Tia, Mary, Kasey, Nick, Debbie and Caressa!
Raymond J. Lee
Koh, Teddy, Jose, and Allyson are ready to get their butts to rehearsal.
Raymond J. Lee
On our way to rehearsal. The MUNY is the largest and oldest outdoor theater, and it's a beautiful place to work! Shout-out to the production that's currently performing while we rehearse: The Addams Family
Raymond J. Lee
This area is right next to our commissary. This is where portions of the set get painted and constructed.
Raymond J. Lee
Seussical sign-in sheet!
Raymond J. Lee
Jose demonstrates the proper Seussian signing-in technique.
Raymond J. Lee
The great thing about The Muny is that we can write our lunch orders in the morning so that our food is ready to be picked up at the commissary!
Raymond J. Lee
Our musical director Valerie Gebert and fellow Wickersham brother Omari Tau go through some music before we start. We have 12 days to learn, memorize, dance, act, and put the entire show together. 12 Days!!!
Raymond J. Lee
Teddy Toye for Recycling at The MUNY
Raymond J. Lee
The MUNY is absolutely gorgeous
Raymond J. Lee
Teddy thinks he might have found a dust speck. Oooh that dust speck!
Raymond J. Lee
Stage management is great at making sure we have plenty of water and gatorade to stay hydrated. We rehearse for the majority of the time outdoors and it can get very hot and humid.
Raymond J. Lee
Costume sketch renderings by the brilliant Leon Dobkowski
Raymond J. Lee
The cast stretching before rehearsal
Raymond J. Lee
Johanna Pan tries some of the show shoes on the cast members
Raymond J. Lee
John Tartaglia and Larry Pry give us a quick smile before we start rehearsal
Raymond J. Lee
Repeat: Bug spray is essential for rehearsals!
Raymond J. Lee
Our associate choreographer Jessica Hartman workshops a lift with Abigail Isom who is playing Jojo.
Raymond J. Lee
Sade Simmons, Kameron Richardson, and Jordan Bollwerk also workshop a potential lift for the show.
Raymond J. Lee
Welcome to the West Pavilion!
Raymond J. Lee
Our fantastic creative team and stage management team make sure everything's on track and good to go.
Raymond J. Lee
A quick music sing-through of one of the songs before we put it on its feet. Again we have 12 days to put Seussical together from scratch!
Raymond J. Lee
John tells the ultra fierce Liz Mikel aka Ms. Sour Kangaroo to "Raise your right hand and swear!"
Raymond J. Lee
The amazing Stephen Wallem who plays Horton the Elephant gets to hang out in his favorite Act 2 spot: The Nest
Raymond J. Lee
Koh takes a quick break to hang out with the MUNY teens and kids. They are all so talented and a joy to work with.
Raymond J. Lee
We have a gazelle down!
Raymond J. Lee
April Strelinger shows us her awesome and sassy shirt! She plays Mrs. Mayor.
Raymond J. Lee
Julia Murney shows us that Birds Just Wanna Have Fun! Julia plays Mayzie La Bird.
Raymond J. Lee
Our dance captain Robbie Roby takes a moment to clean up some dance steps.
Raymond J. Lee
Beth Crandall takes a moment to review music before we put a number on its feet. We'll literally learn a song and then immediately block it the next day so we have to have everything memorized as soon as possible!
Raymond J. Lee
Robbie Roby takes a moment to work with the MUNY kids.
Raymond J. Lee
Blakely, Allyson, and Omari work their best Animal Vogue.
Raymond J. Lee
Taking a quick break from rehearsal
Raymond J. Lee
We had our designer run through and were ecstatic to have the cast of The Addams Family come cheer us on!
Raymond J. Lee
Yes that's Rob McClure and Dan DeLuca of The Addams Family, as well as my good friend Hayley Podschun, who all came to see our first run through.
Raymond J. Lee
John and Teddy take a moment to show how much their friendship has blossomed in just a few days.
Raymond J. Lee
Don't mess with the Wickersham Brothers!
Raymond J. Lee
The hilarious Kirsten Wyatt plays the adorable Gertrude McFuzz.
Raymond J. Lee
Our fantastic creative team helmed by director/choreographer Dan Knechtges takes a moment to pose for a picture.
Raymond J. Lee
Here's our awesome stage management team: Anita, Nevin, & Danielle
Raymond J. Lee
John starts workshopping some possible circus tricks for the Circus McGurkus number.
Raymond J. Lee
Autumn Ogama shows off her strength. Don't mess with her y'all!
Raymond J. Lee
Our fearless director/choreographer Dan Knechtges choreographs the flag squad for the Circus McGurkus number.
Raymond J. Lee
Our associate choreographer Jessica Hartman works with the Parasol Ladies for the Circus McGurkus number.
Raymond J. Lee
Katie Spangler and Annie Petersmeyer take a break from throwing the flags to work it for the camera.
Raymond J. Lee
John, Jose, Blakely, Omari, and Koh pose for a quick Circus shot.
Raymond J. Lee
Hi Larry! =)
Raymond J. Lee
John Tartaglia means business y'all! You can't miss him as our Cat in the Hat!
Raymond J. Lee
The boys ensemble fit in a quick fish costume fitting.
Raymond J. Lee
We have 12 days to put this show together. Repeat: We have 12 days to put this show together!
Raymond J. Lee
Lunch break time! Kirsten poses for a quick picture.
Raymond J. Lee
Jose and Sade pick up their lunches at the commissary.
Raymond J. Lee
Beth and the entire commissary team are so awesome and make sure we get our meals as quick as possible. There's Chris in the background!
Raymond J. Lee
Lunch time. Our favorite time of the day. I usually end my lunch break with a nice cold popsicle.
Raymond J. Lee
It was Beth Crandall's birthday so Allyson baked a cake and we surprised her at lunch!
Raymond J. Lee
Sunblock Sunblock Sunblock during rehearsals! It's an outdoor theater and the sun can be very strong!
Raymond J. Lee
Gearing up for our sweat tech. I picked out the most appropriate hat.
Raymond J. Lee
Sitz Probe Day!
Raymond J. Lee
Koh practices his fiercest Eva Peron while Kathryn looks on in fear.
Raymond J. Lee
Sitz Probe :)
Raymond J. Lee
The MUNY teens and kids are also excited about Sitz Probe Day!
Raymond J. Lee
Kathryn and Allyson get some good reading in before we head back into our vans for tech.
Raymond J. Lee
MUNY van time!
Raymond J. Lee
We finally get a chance to work on our amazing set!
Raymond J. Lee
Koh directs us in an impromptu photoshoot.
Raymond J. Lee
The hats have finally come out! Anything we can do to protect ourselves from the sun.
Raymond J. Lee
Jessica Lea Patty, who performed in the original Broadway company, gives an Addams Family shoutout!
Raymond J. Lee
Welcome to The MUNY! 11,000 seats! WOW!
Raymond J. Lee
And we start the tech process on stage!
Raymond J. Lee
The outdoor sound booth.
Raymond J. Lee
MUNY Artistic Director Mike Isaacson and MUNY Casting Director Megan Larche Dominick hang out in the seats with Valerie.
Raymond J. Lee
The MUNY teens and kids hang out with Jessica Hartman.
Raymond J. Lee
To protect the orchestra and the instruments from the intense heat, the crew constructs a huge tent over the pit.
Raymond J. Lee
Robbie Roby helps Koh, our Vlad Vladikoff, figure out his choreography along the passerelle.
Raymond J. Lee
Our stage manager Nevin makes sure we're ready to go for Tech!
Raymond J. Lee
Sade shows us the raccoon trap backstage. Yes, that's a hot dog all the way in the back.
Raymond J. Lee
Stephen and I try and stay as hydrated as possible. It's hot y'all!
Raymond J. Lee
Patrick, Omari, and Katie pose with the huge Seuss books.
Raymond J. Lee
Posing with Seuss.
Raymond J. Lee
Michael Baxter works with April Strelinger, Gary Glasgow, and the MUNY kids on stage.
Raymond J. Lee
Seussical Family Picture!
Raymond J. Lee
Before we got into costumes for the night, the Seussical principals got us all Ted Drewes frozen custard....
Raymond J. Lee
...and we were all VERY GRATEFUL! Ted Drewes = Yummy
Raymond J. Lee
Koh might have danced a little too hard this afternoon.
Raymond J. Lee
Finally in our costumes! Check out the gorgeous Bird Girls Allyson Kaye Daniel, Jessica Lea Patty, and Shea Renee.
Raymond J. Lee
The boys pose for a quick picture. Aren't Leon Dobkowski's costumes FIERCE?!
Raymond J. Lee
The Wickersham Brothers in an iconic monkey pose.
Raymond J. Lee
The boys hanging out with Megan Larche Dominick
Raymond J. Lee
The view from the sound board
Raymond J. Lee
A monkey and an eagle walk into a bar...
Raymond J. Lee
The Wicks giving you editorial magazine realness
Raymond J. Lee
Animal Selfie!
Raymond J. Lee
The male ensemble hanging out on stage with Mike Isaacson.
Raymond J. Lee
Stephen, Julia, and Abigail give us a quick pose
Raymond J. Lee
Stephen runs through one of his songs during tech. He is brilliant as Horton.
Raymond J. Lee
Dan directs John and Julia's bird nest entrance
Raymond J. Lee
As you can tell, it's really hot and we're all starting to shine a little from the sweat!
Raymond J. Lee
The MUNY kids hanging out on the giant Seuss books
Raymond J. Lee
As the night wears on, people start getting tired, but we're almost there!
Raymond J. Lee
And it's opening night! Here we are at the post-party!
Raymond J. Lee
Hanging with the Cat himself :)
Raymond J. Lee
The ladies of FSU come in for a quick picture
Raymond J. Lee
Annie gets in between a lovefest!
Raymond J. Lee
Our cast loves a good Selfie!
Raymond J. Lee
Group Shot :)
Raymond J. Lee
Autumn, Koh, and I were lucky to have first met and worked with Dan and Jessica during the Behind The Painting workshop this past February.
Raymond J. Lee
When we're not running around on-stage at the MUNY we are....going out for group dinners!
Raymond J. Lee
We also do our laundry.
Raymond J. Lee
We take public transportation to various St. Louis tourist spots.
Raymond J. Lee
We pose at the famous Gateway Arch.
Raymond J. Lee
We hit up the local bars.
Raymond J. Lee
We also love to Dance Party it out!
Raymond J. Lee
Here I am with my Honeymoon in Vegas buddies Matt Saldivar and Barry Busby. They're both working on the next MUNY show: Grease.
Raymond J. Lee
So hurry up and come see us in Seussical!
Raymond J. Lee
All the animals are already giving it a rave. 6 Paws Up!
Raymond J. Lee
The MUNY teens giving us their best salute. The future of Broadway y'all :)
Raymond J. Lee
...and thanks for checking out our pictures. This is Raymond J. Lee signing off :)
Raymond J. Lee
*
Directed and choreographed by Dan Knechtges with music direction by Valerie Gebert, the limited engagement continues through July 28.
The cast is headed by Stephen Wallem as Horton the Elephant and John Tartaglia as The Cat in the Hat with Julia Murney as Mayzie LaBird, Kirsten Wyatt as Gertrude McFuzz, Liz Mikel as Sour Kangaroo, James Anthony as General Genghis Kahn Schmitz, Gary Glasgow as The Mayor of Whoville, April Strelinger as Mrs. Mayor and Abigail Isom as JoJo.
"This wonderful musical explores the power and mystery of imagination," said Muny executive producer and artistic director Mike Isaacson in a previous statement. "I can't imagine a more exciting and fantastic group of actors to inspire our audience to celebrate the world of Seuss."
"Dr. Seuss's timeless stories burst to wondrous and enchanting musical life in one of the world's most popular musicals," according to press notes. "Narrated by The Cat in the Hat, this magical show weaves the whimsical tale of Horton the Elephant and his quest to protect the people of Who-ville, people only he can see. Featuring the delightful music of the award-winning composing team of Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, Seussical reminds us of the first lesson of Dr. Seuss: Always Believe."
The Muny production features scenic design by Robert Mark Morgan, costume design by Leon Dobkowski, lighting design by Rob Denton, sound design by Jason Krueger and video design by Nathan Scheuer. The production stage manager is Nevin Hedley.
For more information call (314) 361-1900 or visit www.muny.org.
