"When you think about Seuss" anything is possible ? from a bird with a one-feathered tail to a group of tiny people who populate a small dust speck and a military school that teaches children to eat their bread butter-side-up.

"Seussical the Musical," presented by Act III Theatre Company, is an excellent show filled with strange characters, fun rhymes and memorable songs. The company of 40 voices gives a strong performance in this show fit for children of all ages.

Based on three Dr. Seuss books, Horton Hears a Who, Horton Hatches an Egg and McElligott?s Pool, the fun musical introduces a large cast of characters and their varying problems.

The Cat in the Hat (Ross Wolfarth) pulls all the stories together with the help of a Young Thinker (Richard Drake).

Horton the Elephant (Branden Schwartz) has heard a small sound from a speck of dust. He learns that the speck of dust is inhabited by the Whos in the town of Whoville and meets Mr. Mayor (Scott Davis) and his wife (Meg Hoover). Unfortunately none of Horton?s neighbors in the Jungle of Nool can hear the Whos. The Sour Kangaroo (Mimsi Janis), her Young Kangaroo (Katie Klein) and three monkeys ? the Wickersham Brothers (Ethan Greenspan, Kevin Leahy and Silvano Melgar) ? make things very difficult for Horton, who wants to help his small friends on the speck of dust. After all, "A person?s a person, no matter how small."

Horton?s only friend, Gertrude McFuzz (Kira Marie Walsh) is troubled by her tail with only one feather. Taking advice from the troublesome Mayzie LaBird (Carleigh Smith), Gertrude decides to visit a doctor who will help her tail grow long and beautiful. Unfortunately, her tail grows so long, she can?t fly and more problems arise.

In Whoville, the mayor and his wife are worried about their son, JoJo (Drake), who has too many strange thoughts and has been suspended from school. To solve their problem, they send JoJo to military school where General Genghis Khan Schmitz (Caroline Brent) tries to whip him into shape using unusual techniques.

The 40-member cast showed their greatest strength when collaborating on songs like "Oh the Things You Can Think" and "How Lucky You Are." The vocal talents of Walsh stand above the rest and are featured in "The One Feather Tail of Miss Gertrude McFuzz," "Notice Me, Horton" and "All for You." Other strong vocalists include Davis and Hoover.

The Arlington Diocese is well-represented in the show. Leahy, one of the hip-hop monkeys, is a member of St. James Parish in Falls Church. Eileen Sugameli, who played a Giraffe from the Jungle of Nool, is from St. Charles Borromeo Church in Arlington. Natalie Minehart and Morgan Sendek, members of the Red Who Family in the show, are both from St. Ann Parish in Arlington.

Director and Choreographer Marji Jepperson commands a complicated show with a large cast and a story with many twists and turns. Michael Woods, musical director, coordinates the show?s many musical numbers that flow in and out of the dialogue. Julieanne Eckles and Matt Heap, accompanists, instrumentally lead the long show, although the piano used was not up to par.

Sets, designed by Nicci Knauss, include simple back drops and boxes that have different images on each side. Debra Leonard, costume designer, dressed the characters in costumes as wild and crazy as Seuss characters should be.

"Seussical the Musical" runs at the Thomas Jefferson Community Theatre in Arlington through July 31. For information call 703/548-1154 or go to www.encorestage.org.

Copyright ?2005 Arlington Catholic Herald.  All rights reserved.