#1
Posted: 11/4/07 at 12:23am
First, let me preface my review by saying this: I am a huge fan of the movie of The Little Mermaid. It was, I believe, the first movie I saw in theaters when I was seven years old, and to this day, I think it is Disney's best full length animated feature. I also read the Denver reviews of this show, and even though they were critical, I still went into the show tonight with an open mind.
That being said, I loved the show and I think it will be a huge hit. Yes, there are a few problems, but I think overall it is a very entertaining evening at the theater...the audience was going wild and it was thrilling to be there for the show's first NY performance.
I thought that overall the sets, lighting, and costumes were great. The lighting was stunning throughout, especially during "Under the Sea," "Kiss the Girl," and a bunch of Ursula's scenes. The costumes that stood out the most for me were Ursula's and Flotsam and Jetsam's. Wow. Just stunning. Ursula's costume was huge and so elaborate. It's a miracle Sherie can walk with all those tentacles. Flotsam and Jetsam's costumes had green glowing lights on them, which looked amazing. Yes, Flounder's yellow tshirt was a bit weird, but it was still fine. Loved how the mermaid's tails looked...and yes, I enjoyed the shoe-skate effects to show swimming. I was sitting in the rear mezz and it created a beautiful stage picture. The sets were fine. I don't think I saw a bong in the background (people who saw it in Denver said the coral reefs looked like bongs...I didn't see that tonight). I liked the way they did the shipwreck when Ariel rescued Prince Eric and I also love how they ended Act 1 with Ariel changing into a human. Thomas Schumacher came out at the beginning of Act 1 to give a speech saying that one of the set pieces wasn't working, so they were going to leave it out. I didn't realize what the set piece was until I asked a cast member at the stage door...there was this corkscrew-like circulating set piece on the left of the stage during a few numbers that rotated and had cast members on top of it with their elaborate costumes...apparently there was supposed to be a matching one on the other side. When I see the show again, I'll see the difference. Other than that though, the first preview went off without any noticable technical issues.
Now onto the cast. JJ Singleton was on as Flounder and did an admirable job. Aside from his strange costume, he sang well and I enjoyed him in the song "She's in Love." Tyler Maynard and Derrick Baskin were excellent as Flotsam and Jetsam. Loved their costumes as I mentioned before, their makeup, and thought they played their roles well. Jonathan Freeman as Grigsby was fine, in his small role, and John Tracy Egan did a good job as Chef Louis with "Les Poissons."
Eddie Korbich as Scuttle. Probably the worst written role for this show. He did what he could with it, but had two HORRIBLE (and I do mean horrible) songs to sing: "Human Stuff" and "Positoovity." I guess they won't be cut since they want to give Korbich something to sing, but my god, they really should have written him better songs. I enjoyed his costume though...he had his long beak sticking out of his forehead, and when Ariel wanted to shut him up at one point, she grabbed the beak and pushed it shut, which I thought was cute.
Norm Lewis as King Triton. He was fine. He looked great...nice chest and abs. He didn't have much to do though. His song in Act 1 when he broke all of Ariel's human things was forgettable, but I did love the quartet "If Only" in Act 2 with Triton, Ariel, Sebastian and Eric. Great new song!
Titus Burgess as Sebastian. Now let me give you a little background first on my experiences with Titus Burgess. I first saw him in Good Vibrations and thought he was AWFUL. I then saw him three times in Jersey Boys, and thought he was even worse, even with his minor roles in that show. So, obviously, I went into The Little Mermaid, ready to hate Titus' performance as Scuttle. That being said, he was incredible. His "Under the Sea" and "Kiss the Girl" were flawless and his characterization of Sebastian was excellent...right down to the way he walked. I am so glad he was hired in this role (and I never thought I would say that ever). Congrats, Titus. You deserve this job.
Sean Palmer as Prince Eric. He did an admirable job, but to be honest, there wasn't anything written into his part to allow him to stand out. His two songs "Her Voice" and "One Step Closer" were pretty forgettable. He has a nice voice, but really wasn't given good enough material to show it off. Maybe the creators of the show wanted it that way though. Still, he was fine and the audience loved him.
Sherie Rene Scott as Ursula. Brilliant. Brilliant. Brilliant. I don't know what else to say. She was incredible. The new song written for her character called "I Want the Good Times Back" was amazing and totally catered to her vocal range. And of course, "Poor Unfortunate Souls" was fantastic. Her costumes were the best of the evening and the show really allowed her to stand out. Superb job.
Sierra Boggess as Ariel. Excellent. I can't say enough about this girl. Her "Part of Your World" was breathtaking and she had a few decent new songs "The World Above," "Beyond My Wildest Dreams," and "If Only." Her characterization of Ariel was wonderful...and even during most of Act 2 when she couldn't speak, he facial expressions and body language said a lot. For someone who made her Broadway debut tonight, she was just fabulous...and will only improve as previews go on I'm sure. She was crying at the curtain call...probably so overwhelmed by the audiences response...there was so much love for her coming from the audience and she deserved every bit of it. Great job, Sierra, and good job Disney for casting her.
So overall I loved the show and think it will be a huge hit. I know that word of mouth from Denver wasn't very good, but please go see it for yourself...especially if you love the movie. You won't regret it.
That being said, I loved the show and I think it will be a huge hit. Yes, there are a few problems, but I think overall it is a very entertaining evening at the theater...the audience was going wild and it was thrilling to be there for the show's first NY performance.
I thought that overall the sets, lighting, and costumes were great. The lighting was stunning throughout, especially during "Under the Sea," "Kiss the Girl," and a bunch of Ursula's scenes. The costumes that stood out the most for me were Ursula's and Flotsam and Jetsam's. Wow. Just stunning. Ursula's costume was huge and so elaborate. It's a miracle Sherie can walk with all those tentacles. Flotsam and Jetsam's costumes had green glowing lights on them, which looked amazing. Yes, Flounder's yellow tshirt was a bit weird, but it was still fine. Loved how the mermaid's tails looked...and yes, I enjoyed the shoe-skate effects to show swimming. I was sitting in the rear mezz and it created a beautiful stage picture. The sets were fine. I don't think I saw a bong in the background (people who saw it in Denver said the coral reefs looked like bongs...I didn't see that tonight). I liked the way they did the shipwreck when Ariel rescued Prince Eric and I also love how they ended Act 1 with Ariel changing into a human. Thomas Schumacher came out at the beginning of Act 1 to give a speech saying that one of the set pieces wasn't working, so they were going to leave it out. I didn't realize what the set piece was until I asked a cast member at the stage door...there was this corkscrew-like circulating set piece on the left of the stage during a few numbers that rotated and had cast members on top of it with their elaborate costumes...apparently there was supposed to be a matching one on the other side. When I see the show again, I'll see the difference. Other than that though, the first preview went off without any noticable technical issues.
Now onto the cast. JJ Singleton was on as Flounder and did an admirable job. Aside from his strange costume, he sang well and I enjoyed him in the song "She's in Love." Tyler Maynard and Derrick Baskin were excellent as Flotsam and Jetsam. Loved their costumes as I mentioned before, their makeup, and thought they played their roles well. Jonathan Freeman as Grigsby was fine, in his small role, and John Tracy Egan did a good job as Chef Louis with "Les Poissons."
Eddie Korbich as Scuttle. Probably the worst written role for this show. He did what he could with it, but had two HORRIBLE (and I do mean horrible) songs to sing: "Human Stuff" and "Positoovity." I guess they won't be cut since they want to give Korbich something to sing, but my god, they really should have written him better songs. I enjoyed his costume though...he had his long beak sticking out of his forehead, and when Ariel wanted to shut him up at one point, she grabbed the beak and pushed it shut, which I thought was cute.
Norm Lewis as King Triton. He was fine. He looked great...nice chest and abs. He didn't have much to do though. His song in Act 1 when he broke all of Ariel's human things was forgettable, but I did love the quartet "If Only" in Act 2 with Triton, Ariel, Sebastian and Eric. Great new song!
Titus Burgess as Sebastian. Now let me give you a little background first on my experiences with Titus Burgess. I first saw him in Good Vibrations and thought he was AWFUL. I then saw him three times in Jersey Boys, and thought he was even worse, even with his minor roles in that show. So, obviously, I went into The Little Mermaid, ready to hate Titus' performance as Scuttle. That being said, he was incredible. His "Under the Sea" and "Kiss the Girl" were flawless and his characterization of Sebastian was excellent...right down to the way he walked. I am so glad he was hired in this role (and I never thought I would say that ever). Congrats, Titus. You deserve this job.
Sean Palmer as Prince Eric. He did an admirable job, but to be honest, there wasn't anything written into his part to allow him to stand out. His two songs "Her Voice" and "One Step Closer" were pretty forgettable. He has a nice voice, but really wasn't given good enough material to show it off. Maybe the creators of the show wanted it that way though. Still, he was fine and the audience loved him.
Sherie Rene Scott as Ursula. Brilliant. Brilliant. Brilliant. I don't know what else to say. She was incredible. The new song written for her character called "I Want the Good Times Back" was amazing and totally catered to her vocal range. And of course, "Poor Unfortunate Souls" was fantastic. Her costumes were the best of the evening and the show really allowed her to stand out. Superb job.
Sierra Boggess as Ariel. Excellent. I can't say enough about this girl. Her "Part of Your World" was breathtaking and she had a few decent new songs "The World Above," "Beyond My Wildest Dreams," and "If Only." Her characterization of Ariel was wonderful...and even during most of Act 2 when she couldn't speak, he facial expressions and body language said a lot. For someone who made her Broadway debut tonight, she was just fabulous...and will only improve as previews go on I'm sure. She was crying at the curtain call...probably so overwhelmed by the audiences response...there was so much love for her coming from the audience and she deserved every bit of it. Great job, Sierra, and good job Disney for casting her.
So overall I loved the show and think it will be a huge hit. I know that word of mouth from Denver wasn't very good, but please go see it for yourself...especially if you love the movie. You won't regret it.
Now I am actually looking forward to seeing the show rather than being apprehensive. I'll post my thoughts after I see it next week.
