SeaWorld Orlando's sea lions and otters return in 'Clyde & Seamore's Sea Lion High'

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Guests who have missed seeing SeaWorld’s sea lions and otters in their hilarious shows at the Orlando theme park don’t have to wait any longer. Sea Lion & Otter Theater reopened Thursday with the brand-new “Clyde & Seamore’s Sea Lion High” show, and AllEars.Net was invited to be among the first to see it.

“The whole fun concept is that there are sea lions AND humans attending high school. So, you have to bring your imagination with you when you come to Sea Lion High,” said Judy Jenkins, director of education. “They haven’t earned all their credits to graduate, so that’s where the story builds and the drama comes in, and we’ll find out today whether they’ll graduate and have the opportunity to go to Ocean University.”

Guests can expect the same type of humor in the new show that the animals and their trainers delivered in the previous production, “Clyde & Seamore Take Pirate Island,” and in my personal favorite, “Sea Lions Tonite!”

“Kids will like that [Sea Lion High] is laugh-out-loud funny,” Jenkins told me. “The sea lions seem so serious, in a sense, and the trainers are silly with their costumes and their lines. That combination just makes you laugh. I love the connection that guests can have with other guests, as well, when they’re all laughing.”

But those laughs don’t necessarily come easy. Some of the behaviors are ones that trainers have been working on with the animals for three years. Other acts take less time. It depends on the individual animal and that’s animal’s individual relationship with people, said Kelly Flaherty Clark, curator of animal training at SeaWorld Orlando.

There are 10 sea lions, two Pacific walruses and 13 otters that are trained for roles in “Clyde & Seamore’s Sea Lion High.”

“In the cast of the show, we can use 10 sea lions or two sea lions, and that keeps their days variable,” Clark said. “The sea lions don’t know when the school bell rings if they’ll be doing the whole show or if they’re going to be coming out for just science class or just gym or just the finale.”

And don’t forget the otters.

“There is a lot of new otter behavior in this show,” Clark said. “We love to watch them swim, so we put some behaviors in the show that show the audience how otters swim. An otter gets a can that should be recycled out of the water and then an otter is swimming on the second level of this show. The audience can appreciate new aspects of their natural capabilities.”

Repeat visitors to SeaWorld Orlando may notice that some of the scenes in “Clyde & Seamore’s Sea Lion High” resemble ones from the previous show, “Clyde & Seamore Take Pirate Island.” That’s because they were so popular with the audiences that the creators wanted to retain them. The lunchroom scene is almost identical to the old dinner scene when the sea lions steal fish and then deny it. The seemingly earnest behaviors of the sea lions always have audiences in stitches.

If you’re interested in learning more about animal training, be sure to get to theater at least 15 minutes before show time because the pre-show consists of an animal trainer explaining how certain behaviors are learned by the animals in “Clyde & Seamore’s Sea Lion High.”

Longtime Seamore & Clyde fans likely will miss the beloved mime who entertained crowds before “Clyde & Seamore Take Pirate Island.” In his place now is a crossing guard who interacts with guests as they find their seats. Unfortunately, at the show we saw, he just wasn’t as funny. Of course, this is just the beginning of the production, though, so that act may improve over time.

One change that will be a welcome one for some visitors is the expanded soak zone. An announcement before the show makes sure those seated in those lower bleachers understand that a soak zone means getting hit with more than just a few drops of water.

True to its theme of education, “Clyde & Seamore’s Sea Lion High” teaches lessons that are at the heart of SeaWorld’s goals of conservation, such as the importance of recycling and keeping our oceans healthy.

“We do have some messages, but they’re done in a very fun, entertaining way,” Jenkins said. “As a result, it’s more memorable, and it will stay with guests longer, even after they’ve left the park.”

DISCLAIMER: I was a guest of SeaWorld Orlando for the grand opening of “Clyde & Seamore’s Sea Lion High.” This did not affect my story; my opinions are my own.

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