(top to bottom) Jack Ducat, Jessie Grimaldo, and Dakota Renteria in The SpongeBob Musical
Based on the popular early-2000s Nickelodeon animated TV show, The SpongeBob Musical follows the title character, a sea sponge, as he, alongside his friends, stops a volcano from erupting and wiping out their town of Bikini Bottom. Helmed by Lara Tenckhoff, there is so much that's contemporary in the Clinton Area Showboat Theatre’s production. For one thing, the lyrics and score of this piece are comprised of compositions from a variety of famous musicians, from Cyndi Lauper to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, making for an eclectic musical experience. This is matched by vibrant design choices that keep the cartoonish, playful vibe of the original series, which are right up there in quality with the performances.
Portraying the title character is Dakota Renteria, who captures the high-energy character well, with a dynamic voice, to boot. Renteria matched some of the comic energies from the beloved cartoon, but adds his own flair, as does the rest of the cast. One cool thing about returning to review another show at CAST this summer is that I was able to see company members in other roles, and a good number of this show’s principal performers were involved in other shows this summer.
Jack Ducat plays Patrick, the sea star who is SpongeBob’s BFF. His Dumb-&-Dumber-esque dialogue and persona matched Renteria wonderfully, and some favorite moments of his were Ducat's vocals in “I Guess I Miss You” and his fame in “Super Sea Star Savior,” where Patrick is celebrated as a deity from cult followers who say he will save Bikini Bottom after he proclaims “shutting your eyes will make it all go away” – one of the many reactions to impending doom this show features.
Squidward (Mundo Ballejos) had a two sided character that was equally grumpy and hopeful for stardom, and I loved Ballejos' and the ensemble’s big tap number “I’m Not a Loser,” in which Squidward’s self-esteem and stardom shine. He tap dances with a hallucinatory sea-anemone chorus line, brought to us by a super expressive and in-sync chorus. Sandy Cheeks (Jessie Grimaldo), a squirrel in a spacesuit, a reverse fish-out-of-water, and the brains of the team, develops a device to stop the eruption of the volcano. Grimaldo's vocals were incredible, and I appreciated the more grounded quality of her character as a balance to the cartoonish quality (which was a great thing!) of the overall production.
The owner of the Krusty Krab, Bikini Bottom’s most popular dining establishment and place of employment for SpongeBob and Squidward, is Mr. Eugene Krabs (local favorite James Fairchild), whose money-hungry mannerisms were a joy to watch. Krabs’ daughter Pearl, who is a whale, was at the Wednesday-afterrnoon performance played by ensemble member Lillian Asay, who filled in wonderfully. She had a great vocal range and nailed all of the notes.
And the musical’s villain is Bryant Cobb's Sheldon Plankton, a one-celled organism for whom we suspend our disbelief. (No, the actor playing Plankton was not 2.5 centimeters tall.” He is a plotting, scheming, smirking, rapping underwater creature with a computer robot wife, Karen (Molly Beth Blanchard), and the two have a great hip-hop song titled “When the Going Gets Tough (it means it’s time to get lost).” Otherwise, they mostly pop in between scenes with some clever one-celled-organism and robot dialogue, which the theatre company staged in the Showboat balconies. This employment of space was cool and immersive, but sight lines were cut off a bit from audience members in various places. I am a sucker for immersive experiences, though, so I appreciated staging the number closer to the audience.
Another super-immersive portion of this SpongeBob Musical was the Act II opener, where we see Patchy the Pirate (Christopher Graham, who also doubles as Larry the Lobster), a super-fan of SpongeBob, invade the audience and stage alongside his pirate ensemble. This was one of the more engaging numbers of the afternoon – from my floor seat, there were pirates climbing onto empty chairs who were eventually interrupted and escorted off by a crew member.
Other featured characters include Perch Perkins (Trevor Gill-Snow), the town news anchor, who boasted a booming voice in “No Control”; the town Mayor (Sydney Lin, who also directed this production’s incredible choreography); Mrs. Puff (Reese Henrick), who was one of the most expressive and “in it” ensemble members through the entire performance; a French narrator (Sterling Oliver); and last but not least Old Man Jenkins (Nancy Teerlinck), the “Who should we blame this disaster on?!” character type whose elderly mannerisms were solid throughout, and boasted some great green makeup and big round glasses.
Another cool element of this production was the heavy usage of projections, designed by technical director Brian C. Seckfort. The set featured four sections of cartoon-bubble flats hugging the top portions of the proscenium, which were projected onto. Memorable bits included a reference to the recent imploded-submarine disaster (they took that opportunity for a perhaps-too-soon joke and ran with it, which was awesome); various playbills with Squidward’s face photoshopped in; and various cartoon elements from the TV show such as the “One Hour Later” gag and animated bubbles. Overall, these were fun additions, but also had a number of unfinished or off-balance faults to them – though minor issues in the show's overall design. Other standout design elements include various beach balls to simulate volcano debris and The SpongeBob Musical's dynamic lighting design by James K. Davis.
I grew up watching the animated series a lot, so I definitely had a great time with the SpongeBob inside jokes and content. But trust me: You need not be familiar with it yourself to have an enjoyable experience in Bikini Bottom.
The SpongeBob Musical runs at the Clinton Area Showboat Theatre (311 Riverview Drive, Clinton IA) through July 30, and more information and tickets are available by calling (563)242-6760 and visiting ClintonShowboat.org.
