This fall, Herriman High School put on its 2025 musical, SpongeBob the Musical, and it was one of the most colorful and energetic shows the school has produced. The cast and crew put so much love and energy into the show, which made it super fun for the audience. Every scene was packed with creativity, bright costumes, detailed props, and acting that showed the personality of each character perfectly.

The cast and crew rehearsed nearly every night for over 2 months, sometimes for hours at a time, and it definitely paid off. Donovan Noguera said “My favorite part of being in ensemble was the energy overall, and having extroverted and goofy facial expressions.” This was one of the most noticeable things about the play, because everyone put in their own personality which was shown very apparently through the whole show. 

One great thing about SpongeBob the Musical is that many of its songs were written by famous artists such as Plain White T’s, David Bowie, John Legend, Jonathan Coulton, Panic! At The Disco, and many more. It was fun to see other students at the school perform pieces made by such legendary artists, and see them bring their own personalities into it which made the numbers vibrant. One of my favorite numbers from the musical was (I guess I) Miss You, by John Legend, sung by Oliver Haws as SpongeBob Squarepants, and Easton Oldham as Patrick Star, because they were able to make the scene emotional, but also stick to the silly nature of SpongeBob. 

I personally loved the musical, and easily the star of the show for me was Ashley Barnum, who played as Sandy Cheeks. She sounded exactly like Carolyn Lawrence, the voice of Sandy in the animated show, and was just as good if not better than the broadway actress of Sandy, Lilli Cooper. Ashley was so energetic throughout the show, and it was fun to see her play the character of Sandy after seeing her as Cinderella in last year’s fall musical, Cinderella, which she also nailed the part of.

SpongeBob the Musical was much more than just another school play. It was a showcase of the talent, teamwork, and dedication of Herriman High’s performing arts students. With months of hard work from the cast, crew, and directors, the show came together in a way that showed the personality and effort of every single person involved in the making of it.