Review: Valley Youth Theatre Presents MADAGASCAR

The grass may look greener on the other side of confinement at the Central Park Zoo, but for the menagerie of fugitives in MADAGASCAR: A MUSICAL ADVENTURE, other unexpected perils await in the wilds across the ocean. The story line is a recipe for a commercially successful franchise and a high energy joy ride for kids, what with images of exotic beasts frolicking across the stage and the peppy music of George Noriega and Joel Someillan.

There's ample room in Valley Youth Theatre's current production of MADAGASCAR for a bevy of young talents to strut their stuff and kindle a child's imagination.

Raymond Cusick (Melman the Giraffe), Ira Hill (Marty the Zebra), Anastasia Rai (Gloria the Hippo), and Hayden Skaggs (Alex the Lion) bring flair and frivolity to their roles as they cavort from one crisis to another and discover truths about friendship, loyalty, and survival.

Kate Brink (Kowalski), Abby Cardenas (Skipper), Cara Richman (Rico), and Sydney Vance (Private) are delightful as the mutinous and errant Penguins off to Antractica only to discover that the place is not as cool as they expected.

The show kicks into high gear when a very hip Riley Thornton hits the stage as King Julien, the royal honcho of the island's lemurs, and rocks the house with an up-roar-ious exhortation to Move It, Move It!

A cute and entertaining story that provides a showcase for some young and very promising song-and-dance talents, MADAGASCAR runs through November 19th at the Herberger Theater Center's Stage West.

Photo credit to John Buttel