Jeri Tidwell Photography
It’s hard to believe it’s been seven years since Toby’s Dinner Theatre in Columbia, Maryland produced Disney’s The Little Mermaid, mainly because that production was so magical it just resides in the memory as if it were almost yesterday. Interestingly enough, yesterday and today mesh together as several of the cast members from 2018 reprise their roles in 2025, along with some fantastic new additions. If you’d like more of a history of The Little Mermaid on stage, please check out our 2018 review.
Now if you’ve been living under a clamshell and don’t know the story of The Little Mermaid or you only know the story from the 1989 animated film — which differs significantly in several major plot points — we’ll break it down for you in brief. Mermaid Ariel (Abby Middleton) has a fascination with the human world above the waters where she lives, collecting bits of flotsam and jetsam for her collection (a key piece being a ‘dinglehopper’, which is actually just a fork but her seagull pal Scuttle doesn’t know any better so he just assigns names and uses to object as if he is an authority). Constantly distracted by her curiosity, her absence at a concert for her father quickly draws his attention … and ire, so he destroys her human belongings and forbids her to return to the surface. But a shipwreck tosses a handsome human into the surf and Ariel rescues him, leaving him with only the memory of her voice in his head. Seizing on all the family drama, sea witch Ursula, who happened to be Ariel’s auntie, lures Ariel to her lair, with the help of her eels Flotsam and Jetsam, and makes a deal — she’ll give Ariel legs to find her prince, for three days, and if he doesn’t kiss her before the time runs out, Ariel returns to the deep and becomes Ursula’s slave. The price? Ariel’s voice, which will make it very difficult for Prince Eric to see that she is the same person who saved his life. Unfortunately for Ariel, her pals Flounder and Sebastian let slip to King Triton what’s going on and a real family feud erupts as Ariel is dragged back to the sea while Triton and Ursula battle for power and Ariel’s life. Who will win, and will Ariel get her prince?
The stage version of The Little Mermaid retains most of the classic songs from the animated movie by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, with additional lyrics by Glenn Slater for the show. The version of the show that is sanctioned by Disney now is actually a reworking of what was presented on Broadway (2008-2009), with the 2012 production getting some changes to the score and book by director Glenn Casale (including adding a familial connection to Triton and Ursula, removing a character and aging Flounder to a teenager), taking the story in some different directions from the animated film. But it all works, especially as it really bonds the three main character, making the stakes for each of them even higher … because family drama can get messy. Even with the changes, it’s still a familiar story brought to vivid, colorful life on the Toby’s stage, and all of your favorite songs are accounted for including ‘The World Above’, ‘Part of Your World’, ‘Under the Sea’, ‘Poor Unfortunate Souls’ and ‘Kiss the Girl’.
Jeri Tidwell Photography
This 2025 production of The Little Mermaid is just as magical and memorable as the 2018 version, filled with colorful costumes representing various undersea creatures (by contrast the human costumes are more muted and monochromatic), coordinated by Sarah King and Janine Sunday (with assistance from Mary Bova), aquatic scenic design and props by Shane Lowry, lovely lighting design by Lynn Joslin that puts you right under the sea, and hair and wig design by Jayson Keuberth, including Ursula’s amazing coiffure. As with the 2018 version, director Mark Minnick manages to move the cast around the intimate in-the-round stage at Toby’s without anyone smacking someone on (or off) the stage with their large fish tails. This is particularly impressive during the ‘Under the Sea’ and ‘Kiss the Girl’ numbers which bring almost the entire cast onto the stage. It truly is amazing and astounding that this all flows so seamlessly, but Minnick certainly knows what he’s doing and he’s assembled a cast of actors at the top of their games.
Speaking of the actors, Abby Middleton returns to the role of Ariel these seven years later and it’s not like a day has passed. (And you can be fooled into thinking not a day has gone by simply by looking at the poster artwork in the theatre lobby with the photo of Ariel and Ursula from 2018.) Middleton is as lovely as ever with her flowing red hair, and she certainly has the voice of a magical mermaid that would entice any prince or sailor to seek the source. She brings a nice bit of innocence to Ariel and her curiosity, while also having to spend much of Act II communicating with Eric only with her body language (she does sing but with her inner voice that we hear while the other characters do not). It is a wonderful performance and you don’t have to think twice about why Eric is so enamoured with her. Also reprising her role as Ursula is Lynn Sharp-Spears, and dare I say she’s even better now than she was in 2018 … and she was great then! She has such a commanding voice and when she speaks upon her first entrance, it’s actually a bit frightening because you know she means business. And when she launches into ‘Poor Unfortunate Souls’, the entire performance is simply mesmerizing. With the aid of her amazing costume, wig and makeup, Sharp-Spears completely embodies and becomes Ursula in a remarkable performance. Her eel associates also has one returning actor, Joey Ellinghaus (Jetsam), with Shane Lowry taking on the role of Flotsam. Gliding around the stage on rollerblades to give the appearance of swimming, these two easily steal every scene they’re in, with their raspy voices, fantastic harmonies, and delightfully cartoonish laughter. It’s so fascinating to watch them glide around that they even manage to upstage Ursula. Both Ellinghaus and Lowry are fantastic, and it’s great to see Lowry back on stage as he’s now Toby’s Resident Scenic/Properties Designer as well. David James is also back as Grimsby, Eric’s prim and proper guardian, and Jeffrey Shankle steals all of his scenes as the delightfully daffy seagull Scuttle.
New addition to the cast include Carter Crosby, who looks like a Disney prince, and has the voice to match. He makes Eric’s quest to find the woman with the voice believable, and his courtship of Ariel during the ‘Kiss the Girl’ number is very sweet. Crosby makes the audience feel what Eric is feeling, especially his frustration during the orchestrated singing contest to find the woman who saved him, while he is clearly drawn to the mystery woman Ariel. He and Middleton just have a spark together that makes the whole story work. In the role of King Triton, Adam Grabau uses his booming, deep voice to give the king the authority he deserves, but he also give Triton a lot of human emotion when he realizes his youngest daughter is in terrible danger, not from the humans (as he learns late in the story that his beliefs about them have been lies), but from his own sister. He does a masterful job (and with some great hair and a beard that makes him totally resemble the cartoon character) of balancing his authority as the ruler of the sea with being an overly concerned father. Nicky Kaider (who was terrific as Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys at Toby’s) does a wonderful job of selling Flounder as an awkward teen whose voice is just starting to crack. He does a fantastic job of making us believe he’s a lovelorn teenager. Making his Toby’s debut is Elijah Henderson as Sebastian, Ariel’s crabby best friend who also happens to work for Triton keeping an eye on Ariel (even though he doesn’t do a very good job of it). Henderson’s Sebastian is the show’s comic relief as he pours on that thick Caribbean accent, and he does an excellent job with Sebastian’s two big numbers — the show’s two big numbers — ‘Under the Sea’ and ‘Kiss the Girl’, both requiring very different performances as the former needs to be big and bold, while the latter has to be more subdued as he, Flounder, Scuttle and the other aquatic locals try to orchestrate that kiss before time runs out. This show has a large cast and each and every one of them does their professional best to keep the show running smoothly (as do the outstanding production staff who have to quickly remove or set pieces of the scenery in darkened parts of the stage while scenes are taking place on another part of the stage).
Jeri Tidwell Photography
Disney’s The Little Mermaid is a show the entire family can enjoy (as witnessed by the very young girls in the audience dressed as their favorite characters from the show). It’s got the songs you know and love, and this production has an outstanding cast of veterans and newcomers, along with a behind-the-scenes crew and the live orchestra conducted by Ross Scott Rawlings, that make this a memorable and magical experience for audience members of all ages.
And, of course, part of the Toby’s experience with the outstanding show is the excellent dinner buffet (or brunch if you attend a matinee). Along with the salad bar starter, and the various salads, fruits and cheeses, the buffet consists of Ariel’s Broccoli, Scuttle’s Stir Fry Cabbage, Sweet Child Corn, Grimsby’s Linguine, Sebastian’s Spinach Phunque (Toby’s signature side), Prince Eric’s Parmesan Potatoes, King Triton’s BBQ Ribs, Chef Louis’ Oven Fried Chicken, Flounder’s Baked Tilapia, and the carving board of Steamship Round, Baked Virginia Ham and Roast Turkey Breast. Plus dessert of chocolate cake or cheesecake, and an ice cream bar in the lobby. Everything is delicious. Every show also has a signature drink, and this show has The Dinglehopper, a frozen piña colada with optional Key Lime liqueur, topped with thick whipped cream and a sprinkle of graham cracker crumbs, and your very own dinglehopper. And you get to keep the glass (a clean one) as a souvenir.
If you’re looking for a night of family entertainment with great food and a magical live show, you can’t go wrong with The Little Mermaid at Toby’s Dinner Theatre in Columbia, Maryland. If you’re in the area or planning to visit the area, be sure to put this on your list (there was a busload of visitors from Connecticut there to enjoy the performance the night Hotchka attended, so even if you’re out of state, this is definitely a destination for travelers).
Disney’s The Little Mermaid runs about 2 hours 40 minutes with one intermission. Note that fog, haze and strobe effects are used in this production. The show is suitable for ages 5 and up. Note that construction is underway on the new Toby’s facility so check the website for road closures and parking information.
Disney’s The Little Mermaid runs through August 17, 2025. Toby’s next production is the musical stage adaptation of the classic disco movie Saturday Night Fever, on stage from August 22 – November 2.
Disney’s The Little Mermaid – Toby’s Dinner Theatre (2025)
Toby’s Dinner Theatre
Check our Ticketmaster link for ticket availability.
