Broadway Critic: ‘The Little Mermaid’

By Tim Croner
Staff Reporter, The Spoke

After transporting audiences to an enchanted castle, the African grasslands, an ancient Egyptian kingdom and the chimneys of London, Disney Theatrics moved under the sea in their newest musical, “The Little Mermaid.”

“The Little Mermaid” opened on Broadway in January 2008, nearly 20 years after the film it is based on was released in theaters in 1989.

The show’s score features some of the film’s well known songs, including “Part of Your World,” “Kiss the Girl” and “Les Poissons,” but also boasts 10 original songs written for the stage show.

The score is definitely one of the strongest parts of the show, as the underscoring evokes a feeling of being underwater and the songs advance the plot and develop the characters’ emotions.

The lead role of Ariel is performed by Sierra Boggess, who is making her Broadway debut. Her performance is strong throughout, and she expertly conveys to the audience Ariel’s conflicting feelings about the land and the sea and her longing to be a part of the human world. Her rendition of “Part of Your World,” one of the film’s most recognizable songs, will not disappoint fans of the movie.

Heidi Blickenstaff performs the role of the villainous Ursula with such strength, it makes it nearly impossible to imagine anyone else in the part. Her vocals were very impressive during her opening number, “I Want the Good Times Back.” Her truly evil and commanding performance of the Act 1 finale, “Poor Unfortunate Souls,” was the highlight of the show.

Since the winter of 2008, Wayne, Pennsylvania native, and Tredyffrin-Easttown School District student, Andrew McKeough has played the role of the yellow and blue striped fish, and Ariel's best friend, Flounder. Andrew's performance is second to none. While rolling around on skates, Andrew sings his way through the show giving a five star performance. McKeough is on stage about the same amount of time that Ariel is, and sings in many of the same songs. McKeough is a student at Valley Forge Middle School, and is currently living with his family in their New York apartment, where they live during the time that McKeough is on Broadway.

The sets and costumes of the production were not as impressive as the cast. It’s understandably difficult to create an entire underwater world on a Broadway stage, but many of the costumes, especially the tails for the mermaids, could have been better executed. The underwater sets, which mostly consisted of plexiglass “waves” that moved around the stage, were fairly effective, but the transitions to the “world above” and the sets for the land scenes were a bit sloppy.

Despite the slight faults in the production, it’s still an enjoyable show. It may not be the most artistic or the most life-changing show that Broadway has to offer, but it certainly has some excellent performances, a well-known score and it has something that most everyone will enjoy. Sometimes, all you need is a little bit of pure entertainment, and that’s exactly what “The Little Mermaid” offers.

Tim Croner can be reached at tcroner@stoganews.com.

Printed originally on p. 18 of the March 27, 2009 issue of The Spoke