By Laura Churchill Duke
SPECIAL TO THE NEWS
Everything is better, down where it’s wetter! Who wouldn’t want to live under the sea?
Students from the North Nova Education Centre in New Glasgow are about to let audiences know just how great life is under the sea in their upcoming production of The Little Mermaid.
Whether you first came to The Little Mermaid by way of the original Hans Christian Andersen tale or through the classic Disney animated film, the story resonates with the same emotional power. It tells the tale of the mermaid Ariel, who is headstrong, independent, insatiably curious, and longing to know the world in all of its glory, mystery, and diversity, says Andrea Robben, who teaches grade 10, 11, 12 English at NNEC, and is director of the production.
Auditions for The Little Mermaid, says Robben, were held last spring and again in September, so they were able to begin rehearsing quite early in the school year.
“The production involves close to 100 students between cast, crew and band, which is roughly 10 per cent of our student population at the school. Students from grades 9-12 are involved,” she says.
The musical closely resembles the 1989 Disney film that people are familiar with, says Robben, but with any script adapted to stage there are some scenes added and subtracted. All the music people love and are familiar with, “Under the Sea”, “Kiss the Girl”, “Les Poissons” and “Part of Your World” are within the stage production, but there are also new songs added to aid in the telling of Ariel and Eric’s story.
Although the production may be viewed as one for children, Robben assures that Disney has something for everyone, whether people are experiencing it for the first time, or revisiting it from their childhood. The audience will find humor, villainy, a heroine and hero to root for and all set to the backdrop of some incredible music.
“It’s a story of two characters who are fighting against expectations and searching for a sense of belonging, strong familial ties and the bonds of friendship,” she says. “These are universal ideas, that anyone regardless of age can appreciate.”
Robben says productions like these are so important for the schools and the students. Involvement in the arts is important for students as the arts reinforces and helps develop skills in communication, creativity, critical thinking, leadership, collaboration, as well as time management.
“These are skills essential for success in the 21st century,” she adds. “Yes, the production is a lot of time and effort and it takes a myriad of people working continuously to take a show of this size from conception to stage, but the sense of pride, and accomplishment is huge for teens, and really all involved.”
The extracurricular component of the high school experience will be something students look back on fondly as these memories and the friendships they form are long lasting, she says.
As cliché as it may sound, Robben says she is most looking forward to the audience’s reaction and the excitement from the cast and crew when the show hits the stage.
“As a cast and crew, we have been immersed in creating this alternate reality for the past three months and when the audience is finally invited in, it’s a level of excitement and anticipation that has no comparison.”
Emily Langille is a student involved in the production.
“As a mersister we are all kind of jealous of Ariel’s voice,” she said. “It’s pretty great. So, when she makes a shady deal with Ursula and can’t talk, everyone’s having a good time under the sea except Ariel. She is in love with a human when she should get her head back under water.”
But she didn’t want to spoil too much.
“The play is creeping up on us pretty quickly, but everything is falling in place. I like my part of the mersister, it’s pretty fun. I love my role and I love doing musicals, it’s really great and everyone’s awesome and I’m really excited.”
The Little Mermaid plays at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 29 and 30, and at 2:30 pm on Saturday, Dec. 1 at the North Nova Education Centre. Tickets are $15 for adults or $12 for students and seniors. They are available at NNEC from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. or by calling 902-755-8180 Ext. 0.
WITH FILES FROM KENT MACDONALD
