July 13--For much of "The Little Mermaid," the summer attraction from Chicago Shakespeare Theater on Navy Pier, I found myself listening to two shows at once.
There was the one on stage -- the Disneyfied Hans Christian Andersen tale of the red-haired aquatic creature dissatisfied with fins and underwater vista and longing for two legs and the terra-firma embrace of a handsome prince.
Before "Frozen" scaled new heights of parental insanity -- induced by a combination of small fingers and repeat play -- "The Little Mermaid" was the sine qua non of Honda Pilot video programming. To drive down the Interstate in the 1990s and early aughts was to watch countless images of Sebastian, Ursula and Prince Whatever on a multitude of tiny screens. The rear seat sang along to "The seaweed is always greener in somebody else's lake." The front seat remembered decadent spring breaks in Cancun and fantasized about hurling the DVD out of the window and running that smooth V6 engine right over the moray eels Jetsam and Flotsam so they might never sing again.
The second show on Sunday morning here was the more invigorating and spontaneous dialogue coming from the row behind.
"Where's Ariel?" "She's coming." "Where's Ursula?" "She's coming." "Where's Sebastian?"
At that moment, I half-turned to scream out, "Guess what, the crab is coming too" but the cute factor of the face asking those crucial questions prohibited such an intrusion. To say that the endlessly renewable target demographic knows and loves these characters does not begin to describe the situation. At the post-show autograph session, there was even a long line for time with the Mersisters. I mean, they're not exactly Ariel, are they? No matter, apparently.
Chicago Shakespeare long has overachieved with its summer musicals. If you are at the construction site formerly known as Navy Pier for the day and headed in for a 2 p.m. sojourn in the air conditioning, you really don't expect this level of production values, nor the live band. Although it's only 75 minutes -- long enough for me -- this newly cut-down version of "The Little Mermaid" is a big show by any accounts -- at least the size of any adult musical attraction and replete with a smiley heroine (Rachel Eskenazi-Gold) a creepy villain (the superb Rebecca Finnegan) and the requisite handsome dude with legs (that would be Brandon Springman as Prince Eric). If you have a daughter or granddaughter, you will, I suspect, already know the score. And believe me, you don't want to be headed out to see some other "Little Mermaid" and having to explain what happened to "Kiss the Girl."
"The Little Mermaid" was not a hit on Broadway, in part because it presents too many pitfalls for the stage. The heroine has no legs for most of the story, which impedes her on-stage movement, and then she inconveniently gives away her voice, which is never ideal for a musical.
It wouldn't be so tough if the show would stay under the sea. Then, one metaphor could be established and retained. But the underwater action alternates with scenes on dry land. Tricky indeed.
Rachel Rockwell, who directs and choreographs with great exuberance, does not stick with one conceit but throws pretty much every aquatic motif in the book at the material. Matthew Uzarraga, the talented kid playing Flounder, has the wheelies we associate with the Broadway production (they didn't work then, and they don't work now). At other points, Scott Davis' wildly eclectic set offers up a fabric sea out of which Ariel can pop, quite effectively.
When in doubt, Ariel and her friends take to the air -- even as Prince Eric descends into her aquatic world from many heights above. You get a bit dizzy from all the various points of view, and the show is way too busy to be fully effective or focused, but it lands with the fans. One near me was rendered speechless. Eventually.
Jones is a Tribune critic.
cjones5@tribpub.com
When: Through Aug. 16
Where: Chicago Shakespeare Theater on Navy Pier
Running time: 1 hour, 20 minutes
Tickets: $34 ($22 for children) at 312-595-5600 or chicagoshakes.com
