Vince Meehan | Uptown News

Starting on May 2, Uptown youth from the San Diego Creative Arts Project will perform “Seussical Jr. – The musical,” for three nights at the Roosevelt Middle School Auditorium near the San Diego Zoo. The show will serve as a fundraiser for the creative arts school, as well as a chance for the students to display their acting chops to the community.

The performers promoted their upcoming show by participating in a flash mob performance in front of the Joyce Beers Community Center on April 11. The young artists went through several numbers from the Dr. Seuss-inspired show, loosely based on the famous story, “The Cat in the Hat.”

The organization putting on the performance, the Normal Heights-based San Diego Creative Arts Project, is a newly formed nonprofit aimed at giving local kids the training and inspiration to pursue the performing arts.

Student Isabel Mattick performed as a member of the flash mob, and will play the role of Mrs. Mayor at the May performance.

“I’ve been at this for quite a few years, and I enjoy performing in musicals,” Mattick said. “I also do tap dance, jazz, and have performed in a ballet production of Coppélia. I’ll be performing a duet with my friend Julia Lovio, who plays the role of Mr. Mayor.”

Mattick and her fellow students surprised shoppers at the Uptown District Shopping Center, who whipped out their phones to film the students performing their numbers, singing and dancing to the delight of the crowd. In a flash, it was over as quickly as it started.

“This is part of an informal tour of impromptu performances put on at locations such as Ruby’s Diner in Mission Valley and California Pizza Kitchen in Fashion Valley to promote our show,” said Executive Artistic Director Laura Hodge. “We chose the steps of the Joyce Beers Community Center as a civic tribute, and Panera Bread next door has actually agreed to donate ten percent of its proceeds to us for the next three hours.”

Tickets for the musical are available at ticketpeak.com/SDCAP.