FREDERICKSBURG, VA—The Cat in the Hat and all his friends will be treading the boards of the Courtland High School stage in April and tickets are on sale now. STEP VA Inc., the local 501(c)3 nonprofit that “empowers people with disabilities, and their families, through creative expression and sensory exploration,” is bringing Seussical Jr. to the stage on Saturday, April 13, at 6 pm and again on Sunday, April 14, at 3 pm.
Seussical Jr. is the fourth musical, third licensed, that the organization has performed in the last four years. The cast has grown steadily since the first show, a fully in-house production “A Special Covid-19” was produced in 2021. That show, written and scored by long-time STEP VA participant Noah Finch, had 12 cast members.
This year, the cast and crew is nearly 50 strong; and in typical STEP VA custom, each participant has at least one disability. That fact has no bearing on the show, however. Very little is changed, though sometimes the organization leaders will adapt a role—splitting it among actors, for example—and offer support for different levels of needs, such as sensory breaks, 1:1 volunteers for students who need more support onstage, digital copies of the scripts, virtual practice tracks, and dance/acting videos for the cast to practice in their own time. Additionally, the show this year will have American Sign Language interpreters. More information on that coming soon.
Ultimately, audiences for any STEP VA spring musical will witness the magic that is theater, even if it's not what many would expect from a traditional experience.
“They know what they can't do. They live with that every day,” Jan Monroe told the audience at last spring's musical. “Now let them show you what they can do.”
Tickets can be purchased HERE for $15 and color show programs are also available in advance for $5. Children younger than 5 can attend for free, with placeholder tickets available through the same portal as the general admission tickets.
For more information or to donate, visit www.stepva.org.
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STEP VA, Inc. is a 501c3 non-profit organization that provides sensory-based theater and arts programs for individuals with disabilities. Its vision is to transform the world by offering each individual the opportunity to flourish in the community.