My Little Mermaid Review

[Ryguy7]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 3:27pm

Hi everyone,

I saw that someone else has put a review on the board - I thought I'd throw in my opinion as well.. I'll just post some of what I thought was great, and some stuff that I thought could use improvement. If you have any questions, I'll do my best to answer them.

This is my first time ever seeing a show's very first preview, and I am anxious to see what becomes of it when it opens on Broadway. The show was very enjoyable especially since the audience was loving being a part of the first performance.

Thomas Schumacher came out before it started and hyped everyone up about how it was the first performance. He also explained that there could be technical glitches and show stopping if anything went wrong. Fortunately, with the exception of a couple of lighting cue errors, I didn't notice too many difficulties.

The opening number was incredible - starting the show underwater and then having the ship come down from the ceiling for 'Fathom's Below'. The effect was incredible!

I found Ariel's entrance to be very bland and I was disappointed that the main character's first moment on stage was underwhelming. She simply walked/wheeled on stage from stage left (though to much applause). I was hoping, after her mysterious absence during 'Daughters Of Triton' that she would come onstage in a dramatic manner - but she didn't.

Her entrance was also when Flounder started to have a bigger part in the show. While the kid has a wonderful voice showcased in 'She's In Love', I thought his costume was terrible! Everyone had eleborate mermaid/fish costumes and Flounder was dressed in a yellow t-shirt (with blue dots) and yellow shorts. I'm sure there was a reason but I didn't think it fit. J.J. Singleton played the role wonderfully.

I thought Sherie Renee Scott was great as Ursula. She had a terrific costume and she was totally into the part. I found her entrance as well (maybe a theme?) to be underwhelming. She came onstage in her set piece (a bubble) to the sound of Vaudeville like piano music being played. I would have expected a more lavish orchestration to accompany her on stage. If anything, I also hope she becomes maybe slightly less campy and more sinister like in the movie. Her two eels were terrific and they worked well as a group on stage.

Under The Sea was a fun number, and Titus did a great job singing it. You could tell he was totally into it as well when he was singing. I thought his character as a whole was well played and he got a large share of the audience laughs (as expected).

The end to Act 1 was done well, although I hope they add maybe a bit more effect to Ariel's transformation. It was done in a simple way that while not ineffective, it could have maybe been a bit bigger? I guess I'm thinking Beast transformation during B&B and it is nothing like that - just very basic.

The second act as a whole went well - I liked the group number 'If Only' which was sung by various characters. 'Les Poissons' was a fun song to watch and 'Kiss The Girl' was defintely a highlight of the act.

I do have to say, however, that the ending felt very rushed and anti-climatic. Perhaps being used to the movie ending, I was surprised to see it end so quickly. Basically, Prince Eric holds a ball to find the 'girl with the voice' and none of the ladies are her. He then tries to get Ariel to speak, she can't - and all of a sudden Ursula comes across the stage in her bubble and announces the time is up and Ariel has lost her mission.

My first problem with this scene was that Ursula came into the castle in her bubble? It did not make sense to me. Immediately after announcing Ariel has lost, we are transported back under the water (not sure how) where Triton quickly announces he will give his trident to Ursula in exchange for Ariel's life. Then Eric appears, swimming down through the water, grabs the trident, Ariel smashes Ursula's powerful seashell, and Ursula dies (again, with no effect. They simple black out her bubble and she screams). Then the finale song plays.

I believe the action took place over maybe 15 minutes? Very quick ending.

Overall though - I have to say the production looked great. The set, though at times simplistic, was very well done. There was a set piece that was almost in every scene - a big sun/ball that rotated above the stage. I found it distracting at times since I believe it was supposed to represent the sun on one side (for the land scenes) and something aquatic for the sea scenes. It would constantly rotate, sometimes for no reason.

The shoes with wheels (wheelies?) were a neat way of showing that the people under water were supposed to be swimming and all the actors used them without difficulty. They all seemed to be pros at it!

Everyone has a great voice, especially Sierra who will do very well with the role.

I can't wait to see it in New York.
Ryan
Updated On: 7/27/07 at 03:27 PM

[SamIAm]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 3:31pm

Since the show is still in development, it might not matter, as things may change...but just in case.

[TapTapTapioca]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 3:33pm

How was Tituss?

[Ryguy7]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 3:35pm

I thought Tituss was pretty good! He was an audience favorite, and a good singer. While his two major songs (Kiss The Girl and Under The Sea) were essentially group songs, his voice constantly stood out as he would often sing higher than the ensemble. He had great comedic charm as well. Good casting, I think!

[ljay889]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 3:36pm

Is Sherie's Ursula fat?

[Rose_MacShane]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 3:37pm

Yay, another person who was tehre last night!

Overall I agree with you, especially about the rushed end. I really hope they change that. And what were they thinking with Flounder's costume?? He doesn't look anything like a fish!

[TapTapTapioca]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 3:38pm

Was it a big part?

Also how was Jonathan Freeman? I haven't heard anybody mention him.

[Ryguy7]

Posted: 7/27/07 at 3:43pm

Sherie's Ursula is..umm..hippy. She had big hips and her tentacles were attached to a big mesh circle that surrounded her waist so it gave the impression of a wide waist. She wasn't uber-big because I remember thinking when she first appeared on stage that they didn't make her out to be as big as the character in the movie. But she definitely had some padding.

As for Jonathan Freeman, he was good. He was a fairly minor character in the show - I don't remember any singing or anything? Just a supporting character I suppose? But he was good when he was onstage..