Litchfield Community Youth Theatre has turned into a real zoo.
Oh, and uh, just to be clear, that’s a good thing.
The animals take over the stage for LCYT’s annual spring musical, “Madagascar — A Musical Adventure Jr.,” with four shows planned April 7-10 at Bernie Aaker Auditorium.
A cast of 32 youth ranging in age from third to 11th grade has been rehearsing since early February under director Rosanne Hansen, who landed her role in November.
“We have a good group of kids (in the show),” Hansen said. “I think, probably, at least half of them were in the show last year. I wasn’t involved in that show, but most of them have experience in theater somewhere.
“There’s maybe a quarter that are brand new, and that’s fun, too, as they all learn together,” she added.
The musical is based of the popular DreamWorks animated movie “Madagascar,” and follows the adventures of Alex the lion, Marty the zebra, Melman the Giraffe, Gloria the hippo, and a band of swashbuckling penguins as they escape New York’s Central Park Zoo and land in the off-kilter world of King Julien’s Madagascar.
Alex the lion is the main attraction at the Central Park, but Marty the zebra convinces him and their friends that their life in captivity is boring. Aided by a group of madcap by penguins, they escape to explore the world. Their musical misadventures and natural inclinations create some humorous challenges during their journey to finding themselves.
The play features music made popular by the animated film, including “I Like to Movie It,” and other numbers like “Best Friends,” “Relax, Be Cool, Chill Out,” and “Wild and Free.”
Hansen admits “Madagascar Jr.” was not on her list of musicals she wanted to direct — in fact, she knew little about the show’s storyline or music until sitting down to watch the animated movie a week before auditions in January. Despite that, the show seems to be growing on her.
“The songs are super catchy. I am definitely enjoying the music,” Hansen said. “’I Like to Move It’ is the one that everybody knows, but then the other ones are just ... they’re catchy. They get stuck in your head easily, which is always fun.”
Rehearsals have been four days a week every week since early February, and by the end of last week, Hansen said, she felt the cast has come together well. There’s work to do, of course, but she’s confident they’ll be ready to go by opening night.
“We just started our first actual run-through, start-to-finish last week,” she said Thursday. “I think we’re on track, hopefully adding mics soon, which will be nice, because then everyone backstage can hear, and we can work on transitions and everything.”
That work, combined with the shows music, will create an entertaining show for anyone who ventures to Bernie Aaker Auditorium next week.
“It’s animals going on an adventure, and there’s cute penguins!” Hansen said. “I think people will enjoy it.”
