SUMMARY: 

 The stakes are higher than ever in this dynamic stage musical, as SpongeBob and all of Bikini Bottom face the total annihilation of their undersea world. Chaos erupts. Lives hang in the balance. And just when all hope seems lost, a most unexpected hero rises up and takes center stage. The power of optimism really can save the world!

The SpongeBob Musical is based on the beloved animated series created by Stephen Hillenburg and features a book by Kyle Jarrow, with original songs by Yolanda Adams, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Sara Bareilles, Jonathan Coulton, Alexander Ebert of Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, The Flaming Lips, Lady A, Cyndi Lauper, John Legend, Panic! At the Disco, Plain White T’s, They Might Be Giants and T.I., and songs by David Bowie, Tom Kenny and Andy Paley. Additional lyrics are by Jonathan Coulton, with additional music by Tom Kitt. The musical production was conceived by Tina Landau.

HISTORY:

Since its launch on July 17, 1999, SpongeBob SquarePants has reigned as the number one kids’ animated series on TV for the last 17 years, while generating a universe of beloved characters, pop culture catchphrases and memes, theatrical releases, consumer products, a Tony award-winning Broadway musical and a global fan base. SpongeBob SquarePants is the most widely distributed property in Viacom International Media Networks history, seen in more than 170 countries, translated in 30+ languages, and averaging more than 140 million total viewers every quarter.

SpongeBob SquarePants is created by Stephen Hillenburg and produced by Nickelodeon in Burbank, Calif. The character-driven cartoon chronicles the nautical and sometimes nonsensical adventures of SpongeBob, an incurably optimist and earnest sea sponge, and his undersea friends. The Broadway production of The SpongeBob Musical earned its place on 2017’s “Best of Broadway” lists including Broadway.com, BuzzFeed, The Chicago Tribune, The Daily Beast, Deadline, ET Online, Forbes, Time Out New York and Variety. The SpongeBob Musical was named Best Musical by the Drama Desk Awards and Outer Critics Circle and earned 12 Tony Award nominations – the most nominated musical of the 2017-2018 theatre season – winning for Best Scenic Design of a Musical (David Zinn).

(taken from the Concord Theatricals website: www.concordtheatricals.com)

The Delaware Hayes Thespian Troupe is a group of student thespians who attend or live in the Delaware City School District. Most of our students attend Rutherford B. Hayes High School, though some of our students attend the Delaware Area Career Center, attend Post Secondary or College Credit Plus Classes, or are home schooled within the district. 

Rutherford B. Hayes High School has a history dating back to at least 1973 of performing high quality theatre productions all of which were staged in the Willis Auditorium until the new auditorium was added to the high school in 1997. The complete list of past productions can be found in our annual spring musical program, however in the last 10 years it includes fabulous productions such as:

2009 Fiddler on the Roof
2010 Guys and Dolls
2011 The Phantom of the Opera
2012 Legally Blonde: The Musical
2013 Hello, Dolly!
2014 Anything Goes
2014 You're a Good Man Charlie Brown
2015 Footloose
2016 Les Miserables
2017 Damn Yankees!
2018 Shrek The Musical
2019 Mary Poppins
2020* Chicago High School Edition
2021* Little Women
2022 Bye Bye Birdie

*Chicago High School Edition and Little Women were not staged in front of a live audience due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Alternative performance types were used for these productions.