By Noelle Williamson
Leeds Youth Opera (LYO) are performing Seussical Jr. the Musical, this week. If Dr Seuss got you reading for fun when you were little, this show will drive the message home to your kids and your grandchildren, not least because no-one in this talented cast is older than eighteen.
Leeds Libraries have been promoting this show as part of their Summer Reading Challenge, and The Cat in the Hat is coming to a theatre near you this week
Normally, Leeds Youth Opera rehearse at Interplay, in Armley, but on Saturday, they decamped to Leeds Trinity University for a final day of rehearsals.
I went along to find out more about LYO and Seussical Jr. the Musical, and this is what I saw when I walked in:
You’ve heard the expression, ‘a riot of colour’? This is the dayglo Caribbean version. At the far end of the room, most of the young cast were in full costume. At the near end, tables, chairs and floor were covered in all the stuff required for a full day’s rehearsal, and the finishing off or tweaking of set, props and costumes.
One table was buried in lunchtime bags and water bottles; another spread with egg trays, foam noodles, a glue gun and what appeared to be cute mini-Sputniks; another supported a coral reef constructed from noodles and – shuttlecocks? Yes indeed.
It’s like planning a fabulous wedding on a teeny budget: you (Artistic Director) – and a crack team of outside-the-box thinkers wielding glue guns, noodles and shuttlecocks will sort this!
Here are some of the Seussical team: Pauline, Shelley, Matt and Briona, showing off props, fascinators, and that coral reef.* (*Portable – this is a touring wedding show, remember?
I didn’t see Artistic Director Anita Adams at first,
because she works sitting on the floor, level with the youngest performers, unless she’s in among the cast, explaining details
and supporting actors individually.
With Leeds Youth Opera, Anita is on a mission to ensure that every child gets their chance to shine.
It showed in this rehearsal, where I saw a little girl who shyly joined LYO three years ago – now a laughing eight-year-old, excited but focused, in a role that matches her experience, fully at ease in a group of older and more experienced performers.
It also showed in the affectionate tolerance of some older cast members towards younger ones; perhaps remembering their younger selves.
Bronia, a Leeds Youth Opera trustee, told me that all rehearsals end with a feedback session in which everyone is encouraged to speak, in the expectation of being heard; but also to listen and be ready to hear.
This is perhaps how a culture of honesty tempered by kindness, and confidence untainted by vanity, begins. At LYO, whether you are eight or eighteen, you get to cooperate and collaborate in group projects, to explore possibilities, and to succeed or fail without fear of mockery or putdowns, because everyone understands that it’s the attempt that takes courage. And they have so much fun!
LYO ‘graduates’ keep coming back, too, often to give master classes, for example. In Emma’s case, she stepped in when the Musical Director was unable to attend Saturday’s rehearsal. Emma came up through LYO and has gone on to train for a career in the performing arts.
On Saturday, she was not simply an accompanist, but accepted as MD by her former peers.
And what about the actors? Well, when an entire cast acts with such energy commitment and focus the show erupts into life!
Go see for yourself This touring show will be performed in three very different venues:
· LYO’s home base, the Interplay Theatre, this evening (Wednesday, 9 July) at 7pm;
· the Corn Exchange – their first experience of performing in that splendid, echoing, glass-roofed egg – on Friday, 11 July at 8pm;
· St Andrew’s, Roundhay, for the matinee on Saturday, 12 July at 3pm.
To find out about Leeds Libraries’ Summer Reading Challenge, pop into your local branch library/community hub, because it is happening in every branch.
Or – paste this link into your browser: https://www.facebook.com/leedslibraries/
To see photos and a one-minute clip of rehearsal at Interplay Theatre, follow this link. Tickets can be found here.
To find out about Leeds Libraries’ Summer Reading Challenge, pop into your local branch library/community hub, because it is happening in every branch or click here.