Disney’s The Little Mermaid enchants at Toby’s Dinner Theatre

Jeri Tidwell Photography

In 1989, Disney experienced an animation Renaissance (of the classic, hand-drawn style) with the release of The Little Mermaid, the studio’s spin on the classic fairy tale. In 1991, Disney ventured to Broadway with the opening of a stage version of its hit animated film Beauty and the Beast. That show was a massive success for the company (and is now a staple for performance venues around the world), running for 13 years but as that show was winding down, Disney wanted to continue its presence on the Great White Way so they tapped The Little Mermaid for the Broadway musical treatment — a technical feat considering most of the story takes place ‘under the sea’. The Little Mermaid officially opened on January 10, 2008 but had a much shorter run than its predecessor, closing on August 30, 2009. Since then, the musical has been modified with a new book, and that is the version used for subsequent productions. Including the one now on stage at Toby’s Dinner Theatre in Columbia, MD.

If you don’t know the story of The Little Mermaid, it’s fairly simple — a young mermaid, Ariel, is a bit head-strong, defying her father’s orders to not venture to the surface because humans are dangerous (they may be responsible for the death of her mother, at least that’s what King Triton believes). But Ariel loves to collect human ‘junk’ like silverware and other trinkets and stores them in her secret hideaway. But during a storm, Ariel sees a handsome young man swept overboard from his ship and rescues him, but quickly slips away before he awakens. Prince Eric is then obsessed with finding the beautiful woman with the beautiful voice who saved him, even as his caretaker Grimsby assures him he was just imagining things. But Ariel is obsessed too and makes a deal with Ursula the sea witch — who also happens to be her auntie — to give her legs so she can find her prince … but at the cost of her voice, and possibly her soul if she can’t get the prince to kiss her by sundown of her third day as a human. Will this tale end happily ever after? It’s Disney, what do you think?

Jeri Tidwell Photography

I constantly marvel at the productions at Toby’s Dinner Theatre, each one as good as or even better than the last. And they have done some spectacular shows this season including Young Frankenstein, Newsies and Mamma Mia!. The theatre, and director/choreographer Mark Minnick, have truly outdone themselves with The Little Mermaid. I don’t even know where to start to describe this production which is insanely creative from beginning to end. Right off the bat, you’re wowed by the costumes from A.T. Jones & Sons. The design of Ariel and her mermaid sisters is very creative and not at all what I expected. They are able to move about the stage on their own two feet with the tail attached at the waist and sticking up in the air, their legs hidden by skirts representing the water. It’s a very clever way to execute the design. And in addition to the mermaid, there are seagulls, a crab, a clown fish, electric eels and various other aquatic creatures performed or operated by the cast members, most of them deployed during the classic ‘Under the Sea’ and ‘Kiss the Girl’ numbers. It’s a visual feast.

And speaking of visual feast, the production design is flawless, from the material used to represent crashing waves to Ursula’s lair to Prince Eric’s ship. And it all moves on and off stage in the blink of an eye and under cover of darkness or while you’re watching something happening on a different part of the stage (one of the advantages of a performance in the round). One minute you’re watching Ariel perched on a rock and the next thing you know the lights come up across the stage from her and there’s the bow of a ship that wasn’t there just a minute ago. And the production design goes hand-in-hand with the magical lighting, both under the more than capable direction of David A. Hopkins. In an intimate space like Toby’s, lighting is really the key component of any show and Hopkins has outdone himself this time particularly during all of the underwater scenes with lovely blue and green lights that shimmer as if the sunlight is breaking through the water. It truly makes the show even more magical than it already is. Makeup, hair and wigs are also on point with some of the best wig work to date from King Triton’s long white hair and beard to Ursula’s fancy ‘do and makeup that resembles her cartoon counterpart. Mark Smedley’s sound design is also in fine form with sound effects, music and voices all very nicely balanced.

Jeri Tidwell Photography

But none of these technical achievements would mean a thing if the cast wasn’t up to the task of bringing it all to life, and Minnick has done a stellar job choosing the right people for the right roles. Abby Middleton is just lovely as Ariel with her sweet, seductive voice. The role is not one that requires her to belt out a solo, but Ms. Middleton commands attention every time she sings. And she manages to make Ariel and independent young woman without making her seem like a brat. Justin Calhoun was made to play the part of Prince Eric with his square jaw and dashing good looks. Calhoun is a Toby’s favorite and it’s nice to see him get a juicy role putting him front and center because he’s terrific at bringing Eric to life and not making him an oaf like Gaston in Beauty and the Beast. He’s just as smitten as Ariel and you root for them to be together, even when he’s a little dense by not realizing the girl with no voice is the girl he’s been searching for. Calhoun also has an amazing, powerful voice that he modulates perfectly from the more tender moments to those times when he is required to project. He has a voice that audiences can easily fall in love with just as Eric does with Ariel’s. Middleton and Calhoun together are a powerhouse of a couple and real life Disney royalty.

The supporting cast is also in fine form from the background singers and dancers who take on multiple roles to the other central characters. David James’ Grimsby is properly exasperated by Eric’s quest to find his love even while Grimsby is attempting to carry out the late king’s wishes that Eric be married by sundown on his birthday (coincidentally the exact same day and time Ariel needs to get that kiss). Jacob Hale is very cute as the lovelorn Flounder, always chasing after Ariel while she chases her dream to be human; Jeffrey Shankle gets to chew on the scenery and steal his scenes as Scuttle the seagull (a much different performance from his lovely turn in Mamma Mia!); Russell Sunday returns to the Toby’s stage as King Triton with his big, booming voice (and when he and Calhoun get to sing together it’s mesmerizing); and DeCarlo Raspberry is terrific as he skitters about the stage as Sebastian the crab. He leads the show’s two big, best known numbers with aplomb, and he’s just fun to watch whenever he’s on stage even if he’s not the focal point.

Jeri Tidwell Photography

And then there are the story’s villains. Lynn Sharp Spears is delightful as Ursula, a 180 degree turn from her last appearance at Toby’s as Mrs. Potts in Beauty and the Beast. Spears sinks her teeth into this role, giving us a bit of Endora from Bewitched but with a decidedly darker, more dangerous edge. Ursula is a character who will do anything — anything — to get what she wants and to pay back her brother Triton for banishing her, and Spears lets you know Ursula is not one to be trifled with. And Spears also has a terrificly powerful voice, really putting her heart and soul into Ursula’s signature tune ‘Poor Unfortunate Soul’. She may be the villain, but you’ll still cheer for her at the end.

And I have to give a very special shout out to Taylor Witt and Joey Ellinghaus who play Ursula’s henchmen, Flotsam and Jetsam, the electric eels. These two guys bring a real menace to their characters but still manage to charm the audience … which makes them even more dangerous! Witt and Ellinghaus moves about the stage on rollerblades to make them appear to glide through the water, perfectly in sync, using some terrific body movement to convey the movement of an eel. And when they sing together, it’s hypnotic. Not to slight anyone else in the show, because they’re all amazing performers, but Flotsam and Jetsam are easily my favorite characters and the actors got a big cheer from our audience as well. These performances will be remembered for a long time.

The classic lyrics from Beauty and the Beast say it’s a ‘tale as old as time’ and at times that story can feel old. The Little Mermaid, however, is timeless and this production at Toby’s Dinner Theatre will be one for the ages (and for all ages). It’s fun, bright, energetic, with great acting, singing, choreography, production design, lighting design, sound design, costumes, hair and makeup, and a great orchestra. The Little Mermaid has it all … what else could you wish for?

The Little Mermaid runs about 2 hours with one twenty minute intermission. Note that fog, haze and strobe lights are used in this production. The show runs through January 13, 2019. Toby’s next production is the stage classic Gypsy opening January 17, 2019.