ZELIENOPLE — Horton, Jojo, The Cat in the Hat and a host of other comical characters are busy getting their “Seuss” on as they prepare for the opening of “Seussical” March 23, a presentation by the Calvin Youth Group of Calvin Presbyterian Church.

For 12 years the church has been involved in producing family musicals for the congregation and the community.

“We do use all of the proceeds from our annual youth musicals each November to help fund our youth program’s summer mission trips; that’s been providing from $2,000 to $3,500 per year for at least 12 consecutive years,” said Bruce Smith, the director of music and youth director at Calvin. Proceeds from this project will benefit the drama ministry.

Smith draws on his more than 25 years of experience in musical theater with various local organizations such as Seneca Valley High School, the Strand Theatre and the Westminster College Choir in New Jersey.

Seussical is a musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty based on the children’s books of Dr. Seuss that debuted on Broadway in 2000.

Smith does not like to see the label ‘secular’ placed on nonreligious specific performances. “To me, the shows are like the parables of Jesus — stories used to convey deeper truth about life, hope, love and faith,” he said. “If one were to read the Gospel parables alone, they would seem to be entirely “secular” since they don’t mention God or anything religious. And yet Jesus used them almost exclusively in his teaching.”

The church sees the dramas as a ministry of encouragement. “We choose musicals that will inspire — literally, breathe spirit into — our audiences. And we prepare our casts to do that in a spiritual way, understanding and conveying the deeper meanings of the stories we present,” Smith explained.

Tori M. Schlemmer, director of communications and fine arts, on staff at Calvin since 1986, sees musicals as a way to draw people together.

“They are an opportunity for many people with various skills to become involved together. Some prefer the ‘spotlight’ and like to sing and dance, some are happy being onstage singing in a group. Those who don’t like the stage have talents in sewing, painting, building, and can be a part of the ministry using their talents in that way,” she said.

They have been considering the show for a few years because the themes in the show were positive. “It’s a fun show, and it has some wonderful messages including: You should be proud of who you are and you don’t have to think like everyone else,” said Schlemmer.

“Horton’s selflessness in caring for Mayzie’s egg and his dedication to helping the Whos in Whoville are messages of altruism and dedication to true friendship,” she said.

The last few productions at Calvin were for smaller casts, and the group wanted to do a project that would involve more people. The multigenerational cast numbers 35 actors ranging in age from 11 to more than 60.

The show will feature Gary Patterson as The Cat in the Hat, Alex Travers as JoJo, Adam Diamond as Horton and Anne Reiber as Gertrude, with Beth Wilson, Dawn Welding and Karen Cramer as the Bird Girls and Cyndi Plyler as Mayzie La Bird.

Seating capacity is 200 with past performances averaging about 100 per performance. The audience is comprised of church members and people from the community.

This is a ministry of the church to the community and is open it to everyone.

There is no admission fee. However, the church will accept monetary donations to cover the production and royalty costs.

IF YOU'RE GOING

WHAT: “Seussical” presented by the Calvin Youth Group.

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays March 23 – 31 and 2 p.m. Sunday March 25

WHERE: Calvin Presbyterian Church 415 E. Grandview Avenue, Zelienople.

TICKETS: Tickets available by reservation at http://calvinchurchzelie.org/musical/use/tickets/index.html

INFO: http://www.calvinchurchzelie.org/