Melvin Abston News

Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID runs through November 5 at Fox Cities PAC, and the critics are weighing in!

Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID runs through November 5 at Fox Cities PAC! See the cast in action in this video!

THE LITTLE MERMAID opened swimmingly at Appleton's Fox Cities Performing Arts Center. With plenty of laughs, entertaining musical numbers and innovative staging, THE LITTLE MERMAID is a shore bet.

When I last met with these characters 'Under the Sea', I was only starting to cover theatrical events in the Triangle area. Now over three years later, I have more experience, so let's take another dive, shall we? Based on the 1989 Disney animated classic of the same name as well as the classic Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, The Little Mermaid tells the story about a young mermaid who dreams of the world above the sea and gives up her beautiful voice to find her true love.

Okay, let's just get real for a moment: if one approaches this show as an adult and compares it with the canon of theatrical literature, this a production which often falls flat. However, in comparison to average children's entertainment (which is clearly the producers' targeted demographic) it holds up well. Your average elementary aged kid will be thoroughly and utterly charmed. But the parents who brought them? That might be a different story. The performers are all supremely talented, with dozens of Broadway shows to their credit. Even if I felt they might have been instructed to push every moment, they still allow their glorious voices to shine through. While it doesn't run in the same league as the classic Disney films, this production does its job: providing fluffy entertainment for an evening out after school, getting through everything as quickly as possible to make sure the kids get back home in bed to be ready for school tomorrow.

Victoria Theatre Association's Premier Health Broadway Series will present Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID, the under-the-sea spectacle swimming into the Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center Aug. 8-13, 2017. Tickets for the timeless fairytale go on sale Wednesday, June 21.

Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman made their mark with the early Disney musicals, and always included a sense of "home" and "belonging". As much as Disney's The Little Mermaid is a princess-story aimed at the pre-teen audience, it also has a deeper message of being a fish out of water, only in Ariel's case she is a fish in water who doesn't belong.

Victoria Theatre Association's Premier Health Broadway Series will present Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID, the under-the-sea spectacle swimming into the Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center Aug. 8-13, 2017. Tickets for the timeless fairytale go on sale Wednesday, June 21.

Pittsburgh CLO has joined forces with Kansas City Starlight to produce a 21-week tour of Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID, coming to the Benedum Center June 14-25.

Disney's Little Mermaid at Starlight offers a great show and value added video assist

Pittsburgh CLO celebrates 71 years of musical theater magic with an incredible line-up of musicals featuring a team of Pittsburgh CLO alumni and Broadway's very best artists.

The curtain set sail as the orchestra led an overture riddled with recognizable tunes. Two rows behind me, an adorable little girl clad in turquoise fins and a long red wig bounced up and down in her seat, eager for the show to begin. From behind a brilliantly dressed proscenium, Diana Huey popped out through playful bubbles, singing "This is where I belong!" to open the 5th Avenue Theatre's touring production of Disney's The Little Mermaid. Huey, who leads as Ariel, is absolutely accurate in her first lines. Masterfully assuming the role of the stubborn little mermaid with a show-stopping voice, Huey is joined by a stellar cast of theatrical strength.

Last night, Ariel and her underwater friends swam into the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts for a weeklong stay, appropriately at the Walt Disney Theatre. The limited engagement, which originated at Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre in November 2016, is a silly dose of fun and nostalgia for theatregoers of all ages. Though there are performances and elements that seem less than fitting for the grand Dr. Phillips stage, the show as a whole ends up being more than the sum of its parts.

Down Where its Wetter

Disney's animated classic has finally taken to the stage in The 5th Avenue Theatre's production.

A spectacular new production of Disney's The Little Mermaid kicks off at The Broward Center for the Performing Arts on Wednesday, February 22, 2017 for a limited two week run. Featuring the critically acclaimed work of Director Glenn Casale, this beloved tale of a young mermaid's coming-of-age adventure is told like never before. Previously announced casting includes Diana Huey as Ariel and Matthew Kacergis as Prince Eric, with Broadway's Jennifer Allen as Ursula and Steven Blanchard as King Triton. Melvin Abston, Connor Russell and Jamie Torcellini join the cast as Sebastian, Flounder and Scuttle. 

Glimmering coral reefs and a colorful cast of underwater creatures are brought to life in breathtaking detail in 'Disney's The Little Mermaid,' which opened in Columbus Tuesday night. Presented by Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre, 'The Little Mermaid' is a stage adaptation of the 1989 animated Disney movie that was, in turn, inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's original fairy tale.

Take a trip under the sea with The 5th Avenue Theatre's production of Disney's The Little Mermaid! This fun-filled, timeless tale will play January 31-February 5 at the Ohio Theatre. Disney's The Little Mermaid is sure to charm audiences of all ages. BroadwayWorld as a sneak peek at the cast in action below!

The national tour of Disney's THE LITTLE MERMAID swam into Atlanta yesterday and made one heck of a splash. The tour, originating at Theatre Under the Stars in Houston, clearly had a positive impact on natives as countless attendees wore their best mermaid attire, fins and sea shells included.

Take a trip under the sea with The 5th Avenue Theatre's production of Disney's The Little Mermaid! This fun-filled, timeless tale will play January 31-February 5 at the Ohio Theatre. Disney's The Little Mermaid is sure to charm audiences of all ages. BroadwayWorld as a sneak peek at the cast in action below!