Instrumental of “Part of Your World”
Whether or not you’re a Disney diehard, you probably recognize that tune. “Part of Your World” is one of the signature songs from “The Little Mermaid,” a Disney classic that has seen an animated film, a live action movie, and just this past weekend, a live stage production here at Northwestern University.
For Northwestern Senior and Director Alondra Rios, this show was a long time coming.
[Alondra Rios] Little mermaid has always been my favorite story growing up, so I knew this was definitely a story I wanted to tell, but, you know, in a different, more modern lens.
For this production, Rios took her own spin on it. Born in Puerto Rico, she chose to set the story on her home island. The set was complete with a sign to the mountainous city of Caguas, situated about an hour south of San Juan. Additionally, the opening number featured the waving of the Puerto Rican flag as a prop. That’s not the only modernization that Rios has taken on, however.
[AR] And we’ve also done a bit of gender-bending in the cast. Eric is non-binary in this show, so that’s different from the original movie. And Triton is also played by a female, so we have a Queen Triton.
These changes aren’t simple switches, however. For School of Communication first-year Steph-Ann Dejean, who plays the genderbent Queen Triton, a lot of thought and discussion went into how to play this character.
[Steph-Ann Dejean] We started to talk about it in the space, and we wanted to show the mother’s perspective of dealing with a child that is basically in her wild stage. And I think that, through the rehearsal process, I started to learn and grow into the feelings of Triton and how she feels during this entire debacle of Ariel falling in love.
In talking to those involved, the importance of TYA, theater for young audiences, was prevalent. This subset of theater is popular at Northwestern, with Rios saying that she only petitioned to do a TYA production. Dejean, who worked with children over the summer, was thrilled at the idea of performing for a young audience.
[SD] When you act for children, and when you do things for children, they understand you more than you understand yourself in a way. Like they can see beyond anything.
However, this production came with its fair share of setbacks. It was originally slated for a performance in the fall, but was delayed until April due to a rights issue. It also caused a change in location and subsequent change in sets and props.
[Hillary Altes] There were like, plans, obviously, and those plans had to change when we moved from McCormick Auditorium, which is massive, to Shanley, which is very not massive.
That’s School of Communication first-year Hillary Altes. She assumed the role of Producer over Winter Break, after the show was delayed. Though the new venue was much smaller, Rios believes that the new location comes with its own perks.
[AR] And it just feels like a more intimate production, you know, you’re right there in front of the actors, which is really cool.
Though these changes seemed less daunting with the help of those involved.
[HA] For the prod team, we had to do a lot of rebuilding, but a lot of people were willing to jump on board, and knew what happened from fall, and wanted to pitch in as best they could.
But through the trial and tribulations, the show came together masterfully, with Shanley Pavillion sold out for all four shows. In talking to attendees, there were families that drove hours, crossing several state borders to see their relatives involved in the show.
[HA] I think that’s just kind of the thing here at Northwestern. Everyone wants to see everyone else succeed. Everyone goes to each other’s shows. I think every single person who came in to the space was rooting for ‘Little Mermaid.’
And as Rios sat in the audience on opening night, well, I’ll let her explain it.
[AR] I couldn’t get a smile off of my face. I was leaning in the whole time. It was just so great to see all the work that we’ve done and just to see how people also enjoyed and found laughter and joy in our production. It was awesome.
With such a classic show now seeing such a unique approach with the Purple Crayon Players, the organization that put on the production, there is bound to be more to come. The advice from Rios? Remain open-minded.
[AR] I just think having an open mind to change. I think we changed a lot of things in this production, and that felt important to me because I love my classic Disney movies. I grew up on them, but I also think that theater, and especially theater in college, is a time to experiment with how we can make things fresh. How we can make it new.
For WNUR News, I’m Gabe Shumway.
Music fades to the lyrics “Wandering free, wish I could be, part of that world.”
