“A woman doesn’t know how important her voice is until she loses it…”
THE LITTLE MERMAID is the first work that New Jersey natives Howard Ashman (book & lyrics) and Alan Menken (music) wrote for DISNEY. The success of their hit Off-Broadway show, Little Shop of Horrors, convinced Disney to hire Menken &Ashman to write songs for The Little Mermaid. The score and the song “Under the Sea” won Academy Awards for the pair. They were retained as songwriters for the hugely successful Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. This changed the landscape of animated movies and reversed the movie fortunes of Disney Pictures which had been in decline. By making their movies more like Broadway musicals, they gained success. In turn, many of the biggest movie hits from the Disney Studio have been made into hit Broadway shows.
I love directing musicals and seeing the positive effect being part of a musical has on students. Having a regular creative outlet is not just part of a well rounded education – it is essential for a student’s emotional health and well being. Producing a show brings the arts together and provides growth opportunities for all varieties of learners. Besides being incredibly fun, musical theatre helps young people develop many of the skills necessary for success in today’s world: Self-Confidence, Literacy, Communication, Imagination, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, Self-Discipline, Community Awareness, Public Speaking, Curricular Integration, and Teamwork.
I’ve been involved in directing musicals in West Orange for over a decade now. This is the first musical at the High School for which I have done the complete stage direction after stepping in to direct the fall play, ALMOST, MAINE. On the surface, THE LITTLE MERMAID is a light “and they all lived happily ever after” fairy tale about a pretty princess who gives up everything to be with a handsome prince. The Broadway musical expanded the story to make it clear that Ariel is in control of her own destiny and takes responsibility for the decisions she makes. Even though Ursula is the villain of the story, she has some very wise and relevant words in her songs/dialogue about the role of women in society. As a teacher I have done everything I can to make sure all of my students, regardless of gender, feel empowered to fulfill their dreams even when there are forces in society that seek to define them before they can start.
I was in high school when THE LITTLE MERMAID was released in movie theaters. It’s the first Disney VHS movie my parents ever bought me. We would watch it as a family and sing the songs together. My entire family has always sung together, most often in our church choir, earning the nickname “The von Hellyer Family Singers”.
