The Little Mermaid at the SCERA Shell Outdoor Theatre

Last night I saw the second of three productions of The Little Mermaid that I have scheduled this month! This show was at the SCERA Shell Outdoor Theatre, which is one of my favorite summer venues, and I was blown away by the talented cast because every single performance is incredible! Elena Shill shines as Ariel because, not only does she have a beautiful voice during a lovely interpretation of "Part of Your World," she portrays Ariel's wide-eyed wonder and naivete very well with every facial expression. I especially loved her physical performance in "Positoovity," as she learns how to walk on two legs for the first time, and in "One Step Closer," as she conveys her feelings for Prince Eric without saying a word. Jeff Sundwall is brilliant as Prince Eric, one of the best I've seen, and his performance is filled with so much longing and emotion, particularly in "Fathoms Below" (I had goosebumps when the male ensemble joined him in this song), "Her Voice," and "One Step Closer." It is fortunate that this production is outside because Tannah O'Banion, as Ursula, would have blown the roof off a traditional theatre with her powerful rendition of "Poor Unfortunate Souls." AJ Nielsen is incredibly charismatic and energetic as Sebastian (his versions of "Under the Sea" and "Kiss the Girl" are a lot of fun) and Porter McCormick is absolutely adorable as Flounder (he definitely holds his own with the Mersisters in "She's in Love"). My favorite performance, however, was that of Shannon Follette as Scuttle because she is fully committed to the eccentricity of the character with a voice and a physicality that is hilarious. I laughed out loud at just about everything Scuttle said and did (I noticed Foulette interacting with the crowd as Scuttle during the intermission). The main cast is outstanding but I was also very impressed with the ensemble because the vocals in every big production number are amazing, especially the sailors in the aforementioned "Fathoms Below," the Mersisters in "Daughters of Triton" and "She's in Love," and the sea creatures in "Under the Sea" and "Kiss the Girl." As usual, the costumes for the sea creatures are clever (I loved the shark and the schools of fish) but my favorites were those worn by Ursula, Flotsam (Braden Clement), and Jetsam (Eliza Dunn) because they light up! The main set is also really clever because it features a castle representing both of the worlds above and below the water with set pieces that rotate to become specific locations in Prince Eric's kingdom and King Triton's kingdom. I loved that Eric's ship, where he tries to escape his life on land, rotates to become Ariel's grotto, where she tries to escape her life under the sea. Ursula's lair is also a lot of fun because it provides many of the show's special effects. I had so much fun watching this show (I may or may not have giggled when the audience filled with bubbles during "Under the Sea") and I highly recommend this for families. It runs Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays through June 22 at the SCERA Shell Outdoor Theatre (go here for tickets).