From the Wings: Bringing Bikini Bottom to Grays Harbor
Published 1:30 am Tuesday, July 14, 2026
Though the Friday night run through of The SpongeBob Musical had only a few performers in costume and several restarts, the exuberance and joy that the cast had when performing could easily have been for an opening night performance.
The live score blended smoothly with the dialogue and singing, and the colorful and imaginative sets and props resulted in a lively show.
Those planning to attend the Grays Harbor College’s production of The SpongeBob Musical will definitely enjoy their visit to Bikini Bottom. And if you’re on the fence for attending, having only a passing familiarity with Spongebob or find the cartoon annoying, you will still enjoy the production. (My familiarity with Spongebob has only been through memes since I’ve never seen a full episode. I recommend looking up the characters beforehand to fully appreciate how the actors interpreted each character, especially through the costumes. And even without knowing the backstories of the characters living in Bikini Bottom, you’ll be able to easily follow the story.)
Before the cast took the stage for the run through, The Daily World chatted with a few members to learn what it takes to bring SpongeBob to the stage, what’s learned first – the dances or dialogue – and that in the future if you’re considering to audition, even with no experience, it’s worth trying out.
What follows is our conversation edited for length and clarity.
The Daily World: What prompted everyone to audition for SpongeBob?
Libby Carrico (Squidward Q. Tentacles): I’ve done shows here since I was seven and as long as I have the time off, I’m going to be a part of a show. And it’s SpongeBob. A lot of the times we do shows that are kind of more older or more serious with more mature subject matter so it’s fun to do a show where it’s two hours of silliness.
Violet Colburn (Electric Skates/Girlfish Trio): I grew up doing theater ever since we moved here, and I really like doing theater. I thought SpongeBob would just be really fun.
Casey Bronson (SpongeBob Squarepants): I was in a Spongebob household; anybody in my family could quote the show. I’m a SpongeBob nerd. I love the characters. I love the tone, and I love the smart humor that it has. And I just love doing shows here, so the two things that I really love just happen to come together.
TDW: Were there specific characters that you auditioned for?
CB: I lost 50 pounds so I could look more like the SpongeBobs who I’ve seen online because I really wanted this part super bad.
LC: When I auditioned, I was thinking I wanted Pearl or Sandy, a girl role. We got the callback list and I was listed as Squidward. I have always tried to put myself in tenor roles because I have a naturally deeper voice and I feel comfortable singing lower. I think they saw that and if they’re going to throw me in, I’ll just go all in on that because they obviously see something that I don’t.
I remember doing the callback for the role and was ‘Yeah, I really want Squidward now.’
TDW: Is that unusual that the director will cast you in a different role than what you originally envisioned?
LC: You go into an audition thinking this person’s going to get this part and this person’s going to get that part, but then something off the wall happens.
CB: Last year when we did the Shrek auditions, I went in thinking I could play Pinocchio or Donkey. As auditions went on, they asked, ‘Why don’t you read for Farquaad?’ This did not ever register to me, and then I had the time of my life and killed my knees. It’s one of those moments where sometimes there’s something you don’t see that they do.
TDW: Janye, have you done any plays before or is this the first time?
Janaye Mattice (Sardine Devotee): I’ve done plays in high school and did two musicals last year. I didn’t have time to do the winter musical this year, so I’m doing this one now. It’s fun to balance that with school [Grays Harbor College].
I usually try to audition for one of the bigger parts and haven’t landed one quite yet, but I’ve never been disappointed with any of the roles I got. And I super love the one that I got this time too so I’m having a great time.
TDW: Rebecca, do you have a role in addition to being dance captain?
Rebecca Bronson (Perch Perkins): Yes, I play one of the featured ensemble roles, which is also so much fun. There are no bad roles in the show. There are so many named characters that are from SpongeBob.
TDW: How important is it for the to main leads and ensemble to work together to put on the show?
CB: In a show like this, it’s super essential. In the cartoon, the main characters are fun, but all of the funniest quippy quotes that people quote regularly from Spongebob are not from the main characters.
VC: It’s also important to have on stage a sense of community within all the characters because Bikini Bottom is a whole town; you have everybody there.
Jasmine Jo Lock (Ensemble): I’m a part of an ensemble, but also featured in a lot of dance numbers, which I wanted to go for.
LC: I remember seeing you [Jasmine] do the dance and I was ‘Well, that’s how it’s supposed to look.’
Lock: I’ve grown up with dance, and I’ve been doing competitive dancing since three years ago. This has been one of my dream musicals and I didn’t care what I got. I just want to be involved in something fun like this show.
VC: I am Electric Skate, which is really fun because I’ve never had quite this much of a rock and roll role before. I’m just having such a great time.
TDW: Rebecca, what is involved being a dance captain?
RB: Sarah Hadley is the choreographer, so she comes up with all of the dances themselves. This is the first show I’ve been where there’s been an actual dance captain. How she’s utilized me is by throwing ideas at me about certain formations and certain dance moves that need to be adjusted. And I help anyone backstage who needs additional dance work outside of regular scheduled rehearsals.
TDW: Is designing the routines similar to blocking for the actors?
RB: Yeah, basically it’s like blocking but it’s choreography. It’s telling you where to stand and then doing hands as well. It’s working how everyone moves around each other.
VC: Blocking, but the premium version.
LC: Premium block.
JM: The extra fee.
LC: Blocking plus.
TDW: Do you find some people gravitate toward memorizing the lines or the dance moves first?
RB: Everyone’s different. There are some people who latch hard onto lyrics; they can memorize lines no problem, and they struggle with dance. Then people great with dance and then it’s ‘What are my lines’ when trying to dance at the same time. It’s lots of rehearsal to get them both working in tandem.
TDW: It’s clear that the camaraderie that develops amongst the cast is the reason productions are successful because everyone works together. It’s not just the leads carrying the show.
LC: Yes, 100%, I can’t count how many times I’ve been saved by an ensemble member grabbing something off the stage.
CB: Another set of unsung heroes that become a big part of the family at this point in the process is the crew. There’s an entire sequence of this show that literally could not happen without them, and it’s going to be amazing for the audience to see. Without the crew, there is no show.
VC: No big sets would get moved. Props wouldn’t get put away as much as they would. Things wouldn’t be as accounted for. They just do so much that we probably don’t see. They take care of the costumes in the show.
TDW: During rehearsals, can you feel when everything is clicking?
RB: This is the point of the process when we finally start to add the pit and microphones. We can actually hear each other and hear the music we’re actually dancing to. Once it clicks, it’s great, and we can actually all pull our character and our confidence together.
CB: If something is not clicked yet or is not right there, it stands out way more.
VC: Putting things together with the pit is such an amazing feeling because we’re almost there. We’re at the homestretch, the pit is coming in. We have the crew, we have the microphones, and sometimes you don’t realize how cool the music is until you have the pit.
TDW: Is that because the live music adds energy?
RB: Oh yeah, for sure. This show’s fun too because it utilizes a lot of electronic instruments. That’s not really common from what I’ve seen so there’s just an extra layer of noises you don’t normally hear.
CB: The show also features a Foley artist who does the sound effects, which is part of the pit.
LC: It’s the noises that you hear when you’re watching the show.
TDW: If someone is interested auditioning for the first time, how onerous is the audition process?
LC: The fear of not getting into a show is very scary. For example, my show that I did recently, She Kills Monsters, I went through the audition process, and toward the end of it, I had three people who I wanted in my show, but I just couldn’t find a named place for them so I said ‘Let’s do monster crew.’ It was just so cool to actually get all those puzzle pieces together and find places for people who maybe didn’t think that they had a place.
Even if you don’t get in, there’s crew, there’s backstage, there’s lights. We keep your contact information because we see things. It’s never a no, it’s just a not now.
You’re always going to be a part of it, especially if you just come in with a really good attitude and you’re just ready to put yourself out there.
CB: For any first timer, it’s going to be nerve-wracking. I’m still afraid of doing auditions. They’re daunting, but it’s a different fear than first time because with time and experience. It’s who’s going to be there? What do they want me to do? What’s the dance going to be like? What songs are they going to have you sing?
Whereas the first time you go in, it’s just scary seeing the amount of people you don’t know and putting yourself out there. But if you can tear that wall down, it’s very worth it.
RB: Those who’ve never done any theater ever, never sang, never danced, never acted, every skill is trainable.
LC: Yeah, 100%.
JM: One of the coolest things that I personally experienced with the auditions is it wasn’t so much you need to memorize these steps, we just need to see enthusiasm. If you don’t know it, play it off.
CB: The dance audition for the show was exceedingly hard. It was harder other than almost any other show I’ve done.
JM: I don’t think I did the entire dance all the way through and I did the dance four times total. And I still froze up every single time. And I’m still here.
TDW: Any last thoughts you would like to share with readers?
LC: Come join us.
CB: Yes, don’t miss this. Even if SpongeBob isn’t your cup of tea, this show takes a lot of the foundational stuff that makes the cartoon good and then hits you with this weird mix of over-the-top cartoony stuff and then real-world questions and worries. I never thought I’d do a musical where it’s based off of famous cartoon characters all coming to grips with their own mortality.
JL: The musical and the TV show I would say are most definitely different, but it still keeps that same amount of humor. You can definitely connect with the musical as you would with the show.
Performance Dates
The SpongeBob Musical – Bishop Center for Performing Arts
Based on the animated series by Stephen Hillenburg, this is a vibrant, contemporary Broadway musical featuring an eclectic score by legendary pop and rock artists such as Cyndi Lauper, John Legend, David Bowie and so many others. This is a family-friendly show with humor geared toward both children and adults, so bring everyone to come see our local talent bring the bold, imaginative world of Bikini Bottom to life, right here on the Bishop Center stage
July 16-18 at 7:30 p.m.
July 18 and 19 at 2 p.m.
Tickets are available at https://www.ghc.edu/bishop.
7th Street Kids perform Imagine a Dragon
Last weekend, 7th Street Kids performed the first of two productions this month. For its three performances, Imagine a Dragon had incredible attendance, said Mary Nelson, a board member and treasurer of 7th Street Kids. Next to be performed is Beetlejuice JR. with performances scheduled for July 30 and 31, Aug. 1 at 7:30 p.m. and Aug. 2 at 2 p.m.
