REVIEW: Under-the-sea adventure The Little Mermaid dazzles with costumes and vocal range

Amongst flashy costumes, “punny” dialogue and the voice of a mermaid, the underwater realm of King Triton and land kingdom of Prince Eric meet in Drayton Entertainment’s production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid.

The show, on stage until Aug. 4, simultaneously transforms the stage at St. Jacob’s Country Playhouse into an underwater wonderland and a land-based fantasy world through set designer David Boechler’s immense imagination.

The audience was never left guessing which world the characters were in with the help of lighting designer Kevin Fraser. His blue-green ambiance of the sea and soft orange/yellow glow of the sun-soaked land are perfect complements to Boechler’s sea bubbles, land rocks, lavish kitchens and dreamy bedrooms.

The show follows mermaid princess Ariel, who dreams of leaving her ocean home to live on land with humans. After the evil sea witch Ursula casts a spell to give Ariel legs, she washes up on shore. Ariel spends three days vying for the heart of her human crush, Prince Eric. However, Ursula has her own ideas and Ariel is faced with challenge after challenge in the journey to her true love.

Jessica Gallant’s portrayal of the iconic Disney princess Ariel is like a cartoon come to life (think Amy Adams in Enchanted) with her big eyes, impeccable voice and excessive expression. Songs like Part of Your World show her impressive range and cause a double take from audience members, who may question if it’s actually a recording of the 1989 Disney movie.

While Gallant herself was the epitome of Ariel, her choreography lacked finesse. Her arms often seemed detached from the rest of her body in what appeared to be an attempt at whimsical movements, touching her face and floating around her head. Likely an attempt to portray an underwater feeling, to the viewer the choreography was distracting and confusing.

Choreographer Robin Calvert also missed the mark on many solo performances, with cast members spending much of their time standing or sitting on stage singing beautiful songs, but moving very little, allowing the audience’s attention to wander.

It seemed much of Calvert’s attention was put into two songs: Under the Sea and Kiss the Girl. Both scenes, dominated by Sebastian (Aadin Church), provided an array of dancing, singing and impeccable costumes that audiences have come to expect from Drayton Entertainment.

Yet two knockout performances do not make up for a sea of underwhelming scenes.

Some sound effects were cheesy, including a huge electronic sounding splash after Prince Eric throws a fork into the water. Additional songs in the on-stage adaptation bring little to the story line and could have been left out, allowing the dialogue from the 1989 movie to flow freely. That said, the actors themselves did a stellar job.

Oliver Neudorf made a splash in his Drayton Entertainment debut as Flounder, Ariel’s fishy sidekick. The young actor showed extreme professionalism when he nonchalantly picked up a leftover prop from a previous scene and set it aside without breaking character or impacting his scene.

Both Keith Savage as Scuttle and Aadin Church as Sebastian had the difficult task of portraying two of the most iconic characters in the story, neither of which is human.

Savage had the seagull squawk perfected and even worked it into his dialogue. Church nailed the role of Sebastian the crab, wielding his clawed hands like a pro and leaving the audience satisfied with his antics.

While Jayme Armstrong had a fantastic directorial debut with last year’s Beauty and the Beast, the actor-turned-director fell short on the transitions in The Little Mermaid. It can’t be easy to direct live changes from sea to land and back again, but the transitions seemed clunky and lacked continuity, relying heavily on darkened lights or a lowered curtain.

The stars of the show were costume designers Vincent Scassallati and Kenneth Burrell. Their ability to design mermaid tail skirts, an octopus leg dress, a bird costume and countless other animal costumes, which all fit and complemented each other, was truly ingenious.

Not only did Scassallati and Burrell focus on the main costumes, they looked at all the details. A scene in which King Triton watches his daughters sing and perform includes a jellyfish in the ensemble. The jellyfish moves and flows the same way the creature would in the water, adding to the true underwater feel.

While many Disney films are easily adaptable for live theatre, there is something amiss with this adaptation of The Little Mermaid.

Yet despite its weaknesses, it remains a classic fairy tale story that’s sure to please young audience members.

Tickets may be purchased for The Little Mermaid in person at the St. Jacobs Country Playhouse, online at www.draytonentertainment.com/little-mermaid, or by calling the box office at 519-747-7788 or toll free 1-855-DRAYTON (372-9866).

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