THE young performers of BAOS Limelight had promised audiences a fun musical extravaganza and certainly everyone watching Seussical Jr thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

The young people, aged between 12 and 16, brought their special brand of energy, fun and enthusiasm to the stage at the Everest Community Academy. Bold sets designed and painted by the youngsters themselves, made a colourful backdrop to the story unfolding on stage.

The demands of this, their first full-length production, set the Limelighters new challenges - telling a story, timing and developing convincing characters throughout.

Rising to the challenge and demonstrating admirable diversity plus a great sense of fun was 13 year-old Charlotte Killick as the mischievous Cat in the Hat. One minute a doctor, the next a news reporter, then all of a sudden a circus-master – you never quite knew when The Cat would pop up next. 

Connor McGrane, 14, was perfectly cast as dogged, determined Horton the Elephant, managing to steer clear of sentimentality while still touching the hearts of the audience with his quest to save the tiny planet of Who from extinction. 

Twelve year old Patrick Mannion, in his first appearance as a Limelight principal, made an engagingly sensitive JoJo, always in trouble with his parents for thinking “too many thinks”, and his friendship with Horton was instantly believable.

Horton was less fortunate in his relationship with manipulative Maisie – a confident, stylish performance by Lucy Killick – who exploited his good nature and quite literally left him holding the baby.

Amy Knowles was first class as Gertrude McFuzz, an awkward, quirky, slightly geeky bird who thought growing a bigger, better tail would win Horton’s love but realised that the way to his heart was to help him in his quest to save the Whos.

Jack Baldwin and Alyssia Kershaw played Whoville’s Mr and Mrs Mayor, parents of JoJo – not easy roles for teenagers to play (did they base their excellent characterisation on their own parents? Surely not!) Their tuneful duet How to Raise a Child was touching and memorable.

Show-stoppers included opening number The Thinks you can Think, the wistful Solla Sollew and Biggest Blame Fool, belted out with lots of attitude by Sour Kangaroo, a powerfully feisty performance by 14 year-old Hazel Baldwin. Mimicking her was Young Kangaroo, 12 year-old Jess Miller, showing lots of promise in her first ever Limelight show.

Bird Girls, Zoe Blackall, Rebecca St Vincent, Emily Boxall and Rea Bailey contributed glamour and sparkle while Sean Granahan, Ollie Johnson, Louisa Mannion and Harrison Cohen enjoyed their roles as the naughty Wickersham Brothers.

Other strange characters included Yertle the Turtle (Owen White), Vlad Vladikoff (Ellen Granahan) and The Grinch (George Price) proving that every Limelighter is a star, however large or small the part they play.

Co-directors Stephanie Webb and Alex Stores and musical director Simon Eastwood can be proud of the way BAOS Limelight is flourishing under their caring encouragement. More, please!

Jaqui Ball