By Rebekah Weaver
Do you feel like a poor, unfortunate soul lately? If so, the Empress Theatre in Magna, UT, can fix that. Go see The Little Mermaid, and I promise you’ll feel much better.
I’ve been to the Empress before to see Bye Bye Birdie, and I was delighted to get a chance to go back for this show. The Empress is a neat old theater with a lot of history, and I like the intimate feel the venue provides — you get to be right up next to the action.
However, I was curious about how they were going to pull this show off. I’d never seen a stage production of The Little Mermaid before, and I wasn’t sure how a deep-sea adventure would work on a small stage. I’m glad to report that the Empress staff make it work, partially due to some clever use of the stage’s loft, but mostly thanks to the show’s spectacular costumes, done by Ty Whiting. The costuming for all the mermaids, fish, eels, seagulls, and other creatures, especially Ursula the sea witch, gives the show an otherworldly vibe that draws the audience in.
If you’re familiar with the Disney movie The Little Mermaid but have never seen the play, here’s what to expect: you’ll still get to hear all of your favorite songs, including “Part of Your World,” “Under the Sea,” and “Poor, Unfortunate Souls.” However, you’ll get the benefit of extra songs that were composed specifically for the play, including my personal favorite, “Sweet Child,” performed by the electric eels Flotsam (Cheryl Cripps) and Jetsam (Heather Buckmiller). You’ll also get a very slightly different plot, including more detailed backstory between Ursula (Kayla Martin) and King Triton (Corey Perdue), though the major plot points remain the same.
I was impressed by several cast members’ singing, especially Cripps, Buckmiller, and Martin. Other standouts include the surprisingly delightful Chef Louis ( Dylan Floyd Panter) and Sebastian (Alexander Richardson). The leads, Jerrica Boston and Tom Rudd, both had pretty challenging parts, and while I wished their voices had a little more confidence and power, they still left me satisfied. Unfortunately, at the beginning of the play, some of the voices felt like they couldn’t quite find their parts — though since I came on opening night, I expect the bugs were still being worked out and that it won’t happen again.
Though some of the singing needed a little more work when I saw the show, the dancing was spot on, so major props to Choreographer Sarah Bringhurst. In fact, the best parts of the show were the ones that showed off the amazing costumes combined with the perfectly synchronized dancing, namely the fun and joyful “Under the Sea” and the surprisingly lovely “Kiss the Girl.” I wish that I could see both of those numbers again, and then probably again after that.
Big numbers like these were possible because of the entire cast and crew. I’ve mentioned some of my favorite performers already, but the entire cast gave enthusiastic, sincere performances. In particular, I’d like to compliment these people:
- Director Bruce Craven (also designed the sets)
- Sidekicks Flounder (Callisto Waldron) and Scuttle (Merick Masters)
- Music Director Emily Leishman Roh
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And to the rest of the extensive cast and crew, please know that I saw you and appreciate you and thought you were delightful.
All in all, the whole show was a lot of fun, and if you and your family love The Little Mermaid, I think you’d really love seeing it on stage. Catch the show at the Empress Theatre in Magna, UT before it closes.
Photos Courtesy of Deanne Jones
The Empress Theatre Presents The Little Mermaid by Doug Wright
The Empress Theatre, 9104 W 2700 S, Magna, UT 84044
June 8–30, 7:30 PM
Tickets: $10–12
Contact: 801-347-7373
The Empress Theatre Facebook Page
The Little Mermaid Facebook Event
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