Kirk Jameson directs the musical Seussical at London’s Arts Theatre
After a successful season in 2012, the Broadway musical Seussical – based on the books of Dr. Seuss – returns to London’s Arts Theatre, opening on 2 December (with previews from 30 November) and running until 5 January 2014. After Kirk Jameson’s success with On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, staged at the Union Theatre earlier this year, the director hopes this West End project will be a hit with both children and adults.
With a score and book by Tony Award-winners Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty (co-conceived by Eric Idle), this Theatre for Young Audiences version of Seussical throws the spotlight on all the favourite Dr. Seuss characters including Horton the Elephant and the Cat in the Hat.
Below, Jameson tells Musical Theatre Review all about his plans for Seussical and why he believes it is a Christmas classic which should not be missed.
What intrigued you about the show and why were you attracted to the project?
When I was approached to direct the show I was very, very interested. As a nation we were all introduced to Dr Seuss as a child and there’s something about that which makes it quite magical. As an adult, you read Seuss in a completely different light and you begin to see how intellectual the books are. The lessons which Dr Seuss teach us are actually very advanced and delivered in a very innocent way. The show also has a fantastic Broadway score.
Sell a Door produced the show last Christmas. Is it a help to have some of the cast and creative team who were onboard last year taking part, and how will your interpretation compare to the 2012 production?
We haven’t really spoken about last year. They’ve somewhat let me have my own thoughts and my own journey with the production and never really forced anything on me. I like to look at it as having a load of wind-up toys and my job as a director is to wind them all up and see where they go and see where that energy gets you. I imagine being a producer is very much the same thing; you want to inspire the director and feel as though it can go in its own direction.
Are there any technical or creative challenges when directing the show?
I’m very used to working with very little or no technical help, as an actor. As a director, it forces you to be much more creative with what you can do with the actors. It forces you to do things that perhaps you wouldn’t do if you had a massive budget, and so what is nice about this show is that I don’t have to rely on pieces of set flying in or over-the-top costumes. I want to create an atmosphere with the actors in a more striking way. But this show hasn’t stood out as more technically challenging than anything I have done previously.
Do you think the show will appeal to grown-ups as well as children?
Absolutely! Seussical is, because of its subject matter, its original author and because of the way it is written, inherently a children’s book, there is no getting around that. However, that doesn’t mean you have to direct or present it like it’s purely a show for children. I am approaching this like I would any other West End musical. I think adults will 100 per cent enjoy this production as much as the children will, I’m certain of it!
You enjoyed success with On a Clear Day You Can See Forever at the Union Theatre, does that add a certain amount of pressure when you begin your next project?
The honest answer to that is that I don’t believe ‘the success’ and I don’t really react to it in any way. At the end of the rehearsal periods and at the beginning of the performances I see what we have created and I’m either happy with it or I’m not, and that for me is the end of the story as far as I’m concerned. I just want to feel that I’ve achieved through the show and want to feel that we as a company, the actors, the musicians and the creative team, are all happy with the production at the end. But it didn’t put pressure on me to be better; the pressure is just to do a good job with Seussical.
What do you like about directing musicals in particular?
There’s something about musicals in particular which moves me. Musicals are a completely different art-form, they are not like a play, ballet or opera, they are completely individual and it’s really important, I believe, that anybody approaching them, whether as an actor or a creative, acknowledges that. They’re very specific and I love the art-form. I was also brought up with musicals and they fascinate and excite me. It’s an absolute dream come true for me working as a director.
What is your personal favourite musical?
I have a list, I can’t just pin it down to one! Sweeney Todd, Little Shop of Horrors and I am also a massive fan of The Witches of Eastwick, I thought it was exceptional. I tend to be attracted to the slightly darker musicals; I don’t know what that says about me! I also love new musical theatre, it’s so, so exciting and so encouraging. It really pushes the boundaries of the art-form, although don’t get me wrong I do love a good revival.
Molly Kerrigan
* Seussical runs at the Arts theatre from 2 December (with previews from 30 November) and continues until 5 January 2014. In the cast are Ste Clough, Elliot Fitzpatrick, Jordan Veloso, Shekinah Mcfarlane, Alastair Crosswell, Benjamin Vivian-Jones, Thomas Lloyd, Kirsty Marie Ayers, Jessica Parker, Amy Punter, Jennifer Low and Tanya Shields. The musical is designed by Richard Evans, with lighting design by Tom Boucher and sound design by Chriss Bogg. The show is produced by David Hutchinson and Phillip Rowntree for Sell a Door Theatre Company Ltd.
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