Pelham Middle School’s Drama Club delivered an outstanding performance of “The SpongeBob Musical: Youth Edition” from Friday, Jan. 24 to Sunday, Jan. 26, with 74 children participating in the show.
It is a typical day in Bikini Bottom, and the characters wake up to find an underwater volcano is going to erupt and possibly destroy the town. SpongeBob (Conor Ginsburg), Sandy (Layla Shirazi & Lucy Ring) and Patrick (Austin Fedele) are finding ways to stop the eruption whilst everyone else tries to find a way out. Mr. Krabs (Tullin Swirski) uses the crisis to exploit the fish to make money while Plankton (Liam McDermott & Daniel Agbenyega) use it to take control of the fish and starts his own town. Squidward (Madeline Maguire), while intensely negative about the situation, changes feelings at the end to congratulate SpongeBob in bringing everyone back together.
“We started in October, so it was a great experience,” said Jesse Pellegrino, executive director of the play. “My favorite part was seeing kids work at the musical and seeing them feel accomplishment once they understood and become their characters. They use their cartoon as a basis then built on it,”
Alongside Pellegrino, co-director Arshia Panicker assisted heavily in the production process of the show. “Working with Mr. Beck and Jesse is an awesome experience, we all complement each other very well which is so important when you’re trying to direct 70 kids!” said Panicker. “With all the kids and costumes and lights and props and the bubble machine, it was so much to coordinate but I couldn’t have done it with anyone else.”
Panicker is a Pelham alum, who eagerly returned to join Beck and Schleifer in the directional process.
Although the television show and Broadway version are simply seen as a children’s program, SpongeBob holds a deeper meaning than just a kid-friendly show. “A lot of people think it’s a fluff musical, but it holds a lot of meaning,” Pellegrino said. “It reminds us that no matter the challenges we face, the power of friendship individuality and optimism can light the way. There are heartwarming moments of self-discovery and staying true to one’s self and working together for the greater good! We hope they leave the performance with a new sense of joy.”
Pellegrino, Panicker, Beck and Schleifer said that they were very proud of the cast and others involved in the production of the show.
