RFA Brings Broadway Magic to Lancaster Students

On March 12, 685 students from Lancaster Elementary School and Chesapeake Academy went to Broadway to see a show. Or, more accurately, Broadway came to them.

It came in the form of a musical tale of friendship based on the works of Dr. Seuss, told by the Cat in the Hat in a 60-minute format. The show was adapted for young audiences from the Grammy-nominated Broadway musical “Seussical,” written by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens. The performance was brought to Kilmarnock as part of the Arts for Youth Program of the Rappahannock Foundation for the Arts (RFA).

In two separate shows, eight actors from the Sunrise Theatre Company of Lynbrook, New York (a village on Long Island less than 20 miles from the center of Broadway), took students from Lancaster Early Childhood Education Center up to Chesapeake Academy 8th grade on a wild theatrical adventure. The show used songs like “Oh, the Thinks You Can Think!” to tell the story of Horton, an elephant who discovers a world of Whos on a speck of dust and vows to protect them.

Horton tries to save the invisible Whos, including Jojo, who looked even more vulnerable in the second show (the actor having twisted her ankle in the earlier performance when descending, backwards, a series of stepped boxes. That’s the definition of live theater.) While Horton tries to protect the Whos, he also cares for an abandoned egg left by the flighty Mayzie LaBird. Despite ridicule and danger, Horton stays true to his promises, with loyal Gertrude McFuzz—a bird with a one-feather tail—by his side.

“Their music and storytelling had such spark and confidence that you could feel the Broadway original humming underneath,” said Jamie Tucker, RFA board president.

Among the many impossible things that actually happened in the theater: an elephant sat on a bird egg in a tree nest. A small bird grew a tail so full and long that it made it impossible to fly. Students in the front row, from the youngest to the oldest, wildly grabbed at bubbles billowing from the stage. Virtually every audience member raised their hand high to bid on the auction item of Horton guarding his bird egg. The Cat in the Hat called out the winning bid, “Sold to the owner of the circus.” Horton later went before a judge in a courtroom, and some audience members joined Jojo, the smallest Who, in declaring “WE ARE HERE, WE ARE HERE.”

Playing the Cat in the Hat was actor Dy Wiggins, who said “I sometimes forget that I’m playing this iconic character, until I appear and the kids remind me, like today, when they shout “You’re the cat” or “That’s your hat.”

“Remembering my lines for this is easier than for other shows,” she added. “All the lines rhyme and you go on the beat. It’s like Rent or opera where all the lines are sung. It’s almost Shakespearean really. You just have to be on your toes all the time.”

For Jill Lottes, who teaches 5th grade writing, the result was “a terrific show!” Her students have been working on theme and figurative language this year, and the play “supplied excellent opportunities for the kids to witness those things in action,” as well as putting into practice their new understanding of theater etiquette. In follow-up discussions, students identified several themes: “treat others kindly no matter what, be true to yourself (the little one-tail bird) and don’t pretend to be something you are not. Loyalty and making sure that we see others and all the things they contribute.”

“Many of the students were excited to see a live performance and recognized characters and themes from Dr. Seuss stories they grew up reading,” said Vincent Romeo, who teaches 7th Grade English Language Arts. The musical “lends itself well to reflection and discussion in class. For example, Horton’s commitment to protecting the Whos—despite others dismissing them—opens up conversations about responsibility, kindness, and speaking up for people who may not always be heard. We also plan to use the performance as a way to compare how themes, characters, and messages appear across different formats—books, music, and stage performance.”

For 2025-26, the RFA received grants to support the Arts for Youth Program from The River Counties Community Foundation, The Tidewater Foundation and the Mason & Lulu Cole Trust Fund. In addition, the RFA receives grant monies from the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts to support school performances.