#1
Posted: 12/16/07 at 12:00am
"You gotta have heart. Miles and miles and miles of heart..." --Damn Yankees.
Sadly, Disney's The Little Mermaid, the newest venture by Disney Theatricals, has none. It is a bland, soulless, poorly written spectacle that makes me yearn for Walt Disney World's "Voyage of the Little Mermaid" attraction.
Ariel wants to be human. She doesn't want to be a mermaid. So she sells her soul to the devil, in exchange for her voice. She meets Prince Eric, but she can't talk. And he has to get married, so he stages a singing bee, to figure out who has the perfect voice, one which he has heard once before. But none of his suitors do, except Ariel, who, in the end, gets her man, devil be damned.
It's a simple plot - one of the simplest known to man. Simpler, in fact, than the highly successful film version, upon which this is based. But we won't get into the film version, since, as the saying goes, they're two different merfolk.
Perhaps the biggest problem with the show is the idea of style over substance. True, there are some very nice, very attractive stage pictures ("Kiss the Girl," for example), but for the most part, but it seems like none of the designers met before the first preview. They each did their own thing - George Tsypin, the renowned set designer wanted to go for a sleek, modern look, creating an entirely plexiglass set which consists of two large sculptures which bear striking resemblances to corkscrews.
Tatiana Noginova, who designed brilliantly striking costumes for the mammoth "War and Peace" at the Met, seems to mesh realism with the opposite of realism, creating creatures which look realistic (the Mermaids, for one) and exactly the opposite (Flounder, in a yellow T-shirt and shorts).
Only Natasha Katz, one of the most brilliant lighting designers in the business, manages to mesh all the various design schemes together, as well as prove why she's one of the most brilliant lighting designers in the business.
Doug Wright's book reveals how clever and witty John Musker and Ron Clements' screenplay actually was. How does he do so? Only the lines from the movie are truly witty (yet many fall flat, due to a variety of odd line-readings). I expected much more from the man who gave a voice to a German transvestite and two hags with a bunch of cats. While the first act goes over swimmingly (pun intended), the whole second act needs to be rewritten. Bland is putting it kindly. Characters are terribly underwritten, holes are glaring, and it truly shows how a) thin the plot was to begin with and b) how more theater organizations (other than the non-profits) should use dramaturgs to help massage the details. Perhaps Linda Woolverton, whose book for Beauty and the Beast was a delightful counterpart for the movie, would have been a better choice.
Alan Menken and Howard Ashman's score is as glorious as ever, especially with Danny Troob's big, brassy, Broadway orchestrations. The additional material by Glenn Slater doesn't necessarily fit in with the show itself and is mostly pretty forgettable. Anyone notice how much "Good Times" sounded like "If They Can See Me Now"?
John Tracey Egan has a great cameo as Chef Louis. Norm Lewis is completely wasted as King Triton. He gets to show his abs, but his pipes aren't anywhere to be found. Sean Palmer is 100% forgettable as Prince Eric. Tituss Burgess is an atrocious Sebastian, with a terrible Jamaican accent. Eddie Korbich and Jonathan Freeman barely register. JJ Singelton is a cute Flounder, though he disappears in the second act until the last 10 minutes. I figured he had been filleted.
Sierra Boggess is the perfect package. She makes an impressive Broadway debut, with a beautifully clear legit voice, enthusiasm to beat the band, and a killer body. It's just that Ariel is a bit too one-note. Again, a problem with Wright's book.
And, mark my words, this will be Sherie Rene Scott's Tony. I need not say more...though I will be happy to elaborate, if asked.
I blame Francesca Zambello for the problems. It's clear she was in way over her head (pun intended). She has no idea how to stage a musical, and choreographer Stephen Mear obviously couldn't help. Songs like "Under the Sea" should be showstoppers, yet none are, because of his bland, unimaginative choreography.
Zambello has directed in the style of Julie Taymor - lots of imaginative, modern ideas that just aren't up to the par of Julie Taymor. They talk, stand still. They sing, dance rudimentary choreography, or stand still. Then they go back to standing still again. I actually did enjoy the heelies.
Zambello, as I understand it, has gone out of the country to watch the closing weekend of whatever opera she cares more about. Though her work here was done anyway. She staged the damn thing, now the real director takes charge (and we all know who that is - in a nice seat in the 10th row on the aisle).
But he won't change anything. The show will remain as it is. And sadly, I must give it a "C." Pun intended.
Sadly, Disney's The Little Mermaid, the newest venture by Disney Theatricals, has none. It is a bland, soulless, poorly written spectacle that makes me yearn for Walt Disney World's "Voyage of the Little Mermaid" attraction.
Ariel wants to be human. She doesn't want to be a mermaid. So she sells her soul to the devil, in exchange for her voice. She meets Prince Eric, but she can't talk. And he has to get married, so he stages a singing bee, to figure out who has the perfect voice, one which he has heard once before. But none of his suitors do, except Ariel, who, in the end, gets her man, devil be damned.
It's a simple plot - one of the simplest known to man. Simpler, in fact, than the highly successful film version, upon which this is based. But we won't get into the film version, since, as the saying goes, they're two different merfolk.
Perhaps the biggest problem with the show is the idea of style over substance. True, there are some very nice, very attractive stage pictures ("Kiss the Girl," for example), but for the most part, but it seems like none of the designers met before the first preview. They each did their own thing - George Tsypin, the renowned set designer wanted to go for a sleek, modern look, creating an entirely plexiglass set which consists of two large sculptures which bear striking resemblances to corkscrews.
Tatiana Noginova, who designed brilliantly striking costumes for the mammoth "War and Peace" at the Met, seems to mesh realism with the opposite of realism, creating creatures which look realistic (the Mermaids, for one) and exactly the opposite (Flounder, in a yellow T-shirt and shorts).
Only Natasha Katz, one of the most brilliant lighting designers in the business, manages to mesh all the various design schemes together, as well as prove why she's one of the most brilliant lighting designers in the business.
Doug Wright's book reveals how clever and witty John Musker and Ron Clements' screenplay actually was. How does he do so? Only the lines from the movie are truly witty (yet many fall flat, due to a variety of odd line-readings). I expected much more from the man who gave a voice to a German transvestite and two hags with a bunch of cats. While the first act goes over swimmingly (pun intended), the whole second act needs to be rewritten. Bland is putting it kindly. Characters are terribly underwritten, holes are glaring, and it truly shows how a) thin the plot was to begin with and b) how more theater organizations (other than the non-profits) should use dramaturgs to help massage the details. Perhaps Linda Woolverton, whose book for Beauty and the Beast was a delightful counterpart for the movie, would have been a better choice.
Alan Menken and Howard Ashman's score is as glorious as ever, especially with Danny Troob's big, brassy, Broadway orchestrations. The additional material by Glenn Slater doesn't necessarily fit in with the show itself and is mostly pretty forgettable. Anyone notice how much "Good Times" sounded like "If They Can See Me Now"?
John Tracey Egan has a great cameo as Chef Louis. Norm Lewis is completely wasted as King Triton. He gets to show his abs, but his pipes aren't anywhere to be found. Sean Palmer is 100% forgettable as Prince Eric. Tituss Burgess is an atrocious Sebastian, with a terrible Jamaican accent. Eddie Korbich and Jonathan Freeman barely register. JJ Singelton is a cute Flounder, though he disappears in the second act until the last 10 minutes. I figured he had been filleted.
Sierra Boggess is the perfect package. She makes an impressive Broadway debut, with a beautifully clear legit voice, enthusiasm to beat the band, and a killer body. It's just that Ariel is a bit too one-note. Again, a problem with Wright's book.
And, mark my words, this will be Sherie Rene Scott's Tony. I need not say more...though I will be happy to elaborate, if asked.
I blame Francesca Zambello for the problems. It's clear she was in way over her head (pun intended). She has no idea how to stage a musical, and choreographer Stephen Mear obviously couldn't help. Songs like "Under the Sea" should be showstoppers, yet none are, because of his bland, unimaginative choreography.
Zambello has directed in the style of Julie Taymor - lots of imaginative, modern ideas that just aren't up to the par of Julie Taymor. They talk, stand still. They sing, dance rudimentary choreography, or stand still. Then they go back to standing still again. I actually did enjoy the heelies.
Zambello, as I understand it, has gone out of the country to watch the closing weekend of whatever opera she cares more about. Though her work here was done anyway. She staged the damn thing, now the real director takes charge (and we all know who that is - in a nice seat in the 10th row on the aisle).
But he won't change anything. The show will remain as it is. And sadly, I must give it a "C." Pun intended.
Updated On: 12/16/07 at 12:00 AM
