Pioneer students find heart and hope amid SpongeBob’s silliness
Taylor Swift might be number one on the Billboard charts, but for Pioneer High School students, it’s hard to think of a bigger superstar than SpongeBob Squarepants.
“For our generation, SpongeBob is the GOAT,” says Pioneer Sophomore, Vea Williams, who happens to be playing the title role in Pioneer Theatre Guild’s fall production of The SpongeBob Musical. “I almost feel spooked by the pressure, but I’m more excited than spooked.”
“SpongeBob is kind of put on a celebrity pedestal, but understandably so,” says PTG student president Gabby Thompson, who plays Sandy Cheeks the Squirrel in the production. “A lot of us weren’t even allowed to watch the show as kids because our parents thought he was so ridiculous. But now, as we watch old episodes, you realize he’s just so positive and funny and he loves life.”
PTG student vice-president, Arthur Lopatin, says audiences of Pioneer’s show might be similarly surprised to find a little heart below the surface. “The TV show was hilarious and nonsense, but the musical is surprisingly full of messages that I was not expecting,” Lopatin says.
Director Naomi Parr, a theatre student at the University of Michigan, agrees.
“The story is doomsday and ominous, and there are all kinds of government mismanagement and fearmongering by the media,” Parr says, describing the plot in which the citizens of Bikini Bottom learn a volcano will soon erupt and destroy their hometown. “The first time I saw it, I thought of climate change, and when I talked to some of the kids in the cast, they told me they read it as COVID-19.”
“This show is all about when disaster strikes, we can’t let the worst parts of ourselves come out,” says junior Simon Schroeder, who plays Squidward. “I think we saw a lot of that in Covid, and I think it has a really important message of keeping positive. As light as that sounds, I think it’s really important, especially in today’s world.”
But for those hoping for escapism from the stress of our times, Parr (the director) says this show provides plenty of it. “It’s still a comedy through-and-through. It’s so fun and so sincere and silly all at once, and it’s a show that has something for every age. I can’t think of a better show for a high school.”
The SpongeBob Musical, which debuted on Broadway in 2018, features songs from multiple popular artists spanning nearly every genre, including The Flaming Lips, John Legend, Aerosmith, They Might Be Giants, Yolanda Adams, Panic! at the Disco, Cyndi Lauper, and David Bowie. Nominated for 12 Tony Awards, the show developed a particularly strong reputation for its bold and creative technical design.
Mysti Plummer, Technical Director and co-leader of PTG, says she was excited by the show’s creative opportunities but didn’t want to copy the original. “I always try to find a way to make it Pioneer Theatre Guild’s and not a rendition of someone else’s show,” Plummer says.
Sets co-crewhead, Fiona Garwood, says that’s why she loves working with Plummer. “Mysti makes these great mock-ups and has such a strong vision, but she’s really good at getting us involved too,” Garwood says. “She doesn’t just throw our ideas to the side. If a student has a good idea and it makes the show better, she incorporates it.”
Whether it was PTG’s reputation for creativity or SpongeBob’s celebrity status that attracted students, co-producers Jayme Kelmigian and Quinn Strassel say they were overwhelmed by the turnout for auditions and backstage jobs.
“We were hoping to get a big turnout for the fall show, but I don’t think we could have predicted just how many kids were excited for this one,” Strassel says. “Our cast is about as big as PTG has had in a long time, and our crews are completely full.”
“It’s been a really positive group of kids to be a part of this year, and it’s great to see them having so much fun,” Kelmigian adds. “I’m hopeful that the audience will feel the love.”
PERFORMANCE DATES:
Thursday, November 6th, 7:00 pm
Friday, November 7th, 7:00 pm
Saturday, November 8th, 2:00 pm (matinee)
Saturday, November 8th, 7:00 pm
Sunday, November 9th, 2:00 pm (matinee)
Performances are in Pioneer High School’s Schreiber Auditorium, 601 W. Stadium Blvd., Ann Arbor.
Reserved seating tickets are on sale now:
www.cur8.com/projects/ptg
Tickets: $20 (Adults) and $15 (Students, 65+ Seniors)
The paint crew of Pioneer Theatre Guild’s fall production The SpongeBob Musical works on one of the backdrops. (photo credit: Quinn Strassel)
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