Ryan J. Hurdle, Brycen Witt, and ensemble members in The SpongeBob Musical
The SpongeBob Musical is a strange gem of a show. It features characters based on a cartoon made for kids with music composed by more artists that I can count. In the first act alone: David Bowie, Plain White T’s, T.I., Panic! at the Disco, Cyndi Lauper, and many, many more. On paper, it sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. With that many cooks in the kitchen, surely there’s no way the final product will work. And yet, somehow, it does! When it first debuted on Broadway under the title SpongeBob SquarePants, the show went on to receive 12 Tony nominations, though it won only one. The Spotlight Theatre’s production, helmed by Noah Hill, largely fits that same mold, with a lot of great work coming through. But things didn’t gel as much as I hoped they would.
Given that this musical is inspired by a kids cartoon, its story is surprisingly heavy. At the start, it's a typical day in Bikini Bottom, home to SpongeBob (Ryan J. Hurdle). But a tremor runs through the town and everyone begins to panic. The tremors are being caused by a nearby volcano, Mount Humongous, that is about to erupt and wipe Bikini Bottom from the face of the ocean. From there, the townsfolk handle this crisis as only musical townsfolk can – with xenophobia, monetary exploitation of people’s fear, distrust of the government, and a hypno-ray. Okay, maybe that last one is uniquely SpongeBob-esque, but the rest are themes you’d expect to see in works that don’t star the world’s most enthusiastic sponge.
Despite the apocalyptic setting, there’s so much silly joy to be found here. Hill's entire ensemble is great, and most of them deliver pretty good interpretations of their cartoon counterparts. Hurdle is endearing, has great physicality, and a killer set of pipes. He truly brings SpongeBob to life, which is no small feat. Likewise, Adam Sanders' Patrick Star and Sydney Rosebrough’s Sandy Cheeks are charming, and their portrayers can belt with the best of them. Mr. Krabs is played by the perfectly cast Brant Peitersen, who seems to relish his role as a penny-pinching miser, while Lexi Pelzer, another vocal powerhouse, is his daughter Pearl. There’s also Brycen Witt as Squidward, who dazzles with a tap number that features four legs instead of two.
And I haven’t even gotten to The SpongeBob Musical's technical elements, which are largely a resounding success. Costume designer Sara Wegener knocks it out of the park, with almost every actor having multiple wardrobe pieces, all of which are so vibrant that they practically pop off the stage. Honestly, that goes for the entire production – I can’t recall the last time I saw so much color in a theatre. So many hues and shades make for a visual feast. The scenic and lighting designs by Spotlight co-owner Brent Tubbs are a hoot, with constant changes and surprises. Even Sarah Greim’s props boast a delightful attention to detail, with a lot cool Easter eggs for fans of the animated series.
On that note, I will offer the caveat that your mileage with this story may vary: My mom went with me on Saturday night and enjoyed it significantly less than I did. She’d never seen the TV series, so the characters and locations were all totally new to her. As it turns out, quite a few jokes in this musical are only funny if you’re familiar with the show, and if you don’t read the following sentence with a very particular voice in your head, this may not be the production for you: “Chocolate. I remember when they invented chocolate. I always hated it!”
But even though I didn't share my mom's unfamiliarity with the material, the performances I attended were impacted by sound issues that, to be nice, really bummed me out. During Saturday’s presentation, there were mics that weren’t on, some that were turned way too loud, others turned way too low, and for one poor actor, their mic garbled and distorted their voice so badly that it sounded like Charlie Brown’s teacher took up chain-smoking.
Through my own inability to double-check a schedule, I arrived late to Saturday’s production. So I returned the following day to see what I had missed the night before, and while some of the sound problems did get fixed between those performances, others persisted. It’s so frustrating, and it’s such a shame, because there are such incredible performances happening that are getting smothered by terrible acoustics. There’s a rap verse in the first act that I couldn’t pick a single word out of, some ensemble members who clearly got the “bad” mics, and a pit that drowned out any non-sung dialogue.
The SpongeBob Musical features a lot of wonderful work from some incredibly talented artists. The show's content may be too opaque if you’re not already a fan of the cartoon, and the acoustics of the space often hurt more than help, but there’s still a lot to enjoy. Just try to sit as close to the stage as you can!
The SpongeBob Musical runs at the Spotlight Theatre (1800 Seventh Avenue, Moline IL) through June 11, and more information and tickets are available by calling (309)912-7647 and visiting TheSpotlightTheatreQC.com.
