“The Little Mermaid Jr.” is staging for six days only
By STU CLAMPITT
Young actors ages 9 to 14 will bring to life Disney’s The Little Mermaid Jr. for audiences of up to 500 people for only six performances in Booth Tarkington Civic Theatre, 3 Carter Green, Carmel, starting tonight at 7 p.m.
Based on one of Hans Christian Andersen’s most beloved stories, Disney’s The Little Mermaid Jr. is an enchanting look at the sacrifices we all make for love and acceptance. In a magical underwater kingdom, the beautiful young mermaid, Ariel, longs to leave her ocean home – and her fins – behind and live in the world above. But first, she’ll have to defy her father, King Triton, make a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, and convince the handsome Prince Eric that she’s the girl whose enchanting voice he’s been seeking.
“We began rehearsal May the ninth and we rehearse four days a week, a couple hours a day,” Director Brent Marty told The Reporter. “It spreads it out for them, but that’s what’s needed to put on this big of a show.”
This will be Marty’s 22nd production with Civic Theater.
“We do a show every summer, so it is well-known in the community,” Marty said. “These kids came out to audition in early April and I had around 100 auditioners. We have a cast of 32. I’ve got kids from Fishers, Westfield, Zionsville and Indianapolis.”
Marty said he considers himself lucky to have the level of talent he does from these young actors.
“We have a good talent base, and the kids are easy to work with,” Marty said. “They take direction well. They pick up songs and learn their lines pretty quickly. Mainly the challenges are getting them to understand that they are in a big room in a big theater, so they have to project their voices and learn how blocking onstage works. They have to learn all their stage direction and all those basics that come with being an actor.”
This show gets full support of the Civic Theater production team, offering kids an experience they would find had to find anywhere else.
“We have full sound design, full set design, costumes all built specifically for each actor, a make-up artist and wig artist,” Marty said. “It is an actual production, which is the thing we bring to this age group that not a lot of other companies are able to do, which makes it a special experience for the kids.”
Marty told The Reporter the families supporting his actors deserve a great deal of the credit for how well this show is coming together.
“I want to give a shout-out to the parents and families of these kids,” Marty said. “They invest a lot of time and gasoline getting them to rehearsals and making sure they are working at home which makes my job so much easier. It is wonderful to have the support of the families who really believe in what their kids are doing and believe in our program enough to bring them here.”
With only six days of performance available, you need to get your tickets before they are gone. Tickets start at $19.50 and can be purchased at civictheatre.org or by calling the box office at (317) 843-3800.