The Little Mermaid At Nottingham Playhouse Review
DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW
Reviewed by Sheridan Brown
Nottingham City Centre is buzzing with the lights and sounds of Christmas. And a theatre visit has become a regular Christmastime treat for many families in the region. Some children love the bright lights, pyrotechnics and loud music of traditional pantos. But what if your little one has never been to the theatre before? What if your little one can be a bit overwhelmed by some of the bigger productions? Then The Little Mermaid, now playing at Nottingham Playhouse, just might be the perfect alternative for you and your family!
I was so pleased to have the opportunity to take my six-year-old granddaughter to the opening afternoon of the show. Directed by Alessandra Davison, The Little Mermaid has been specially created for an audience of 3 – 8-year-olds. With a 50-minute running time, the production is just the right length for little ones. And with morning and afternoon-only performances, bed-time routines will remain undisturbed! In a retelling of the traditional story, Marina, a headstrong mermaid, longs to live life on dry land. When her wish comes true, she realises that not all that glitters is gold!
My granddaughter loved the tram ride into Nottingham city centre; a very easy 25-minute journey from Clifton South Park and Ride. We got off the tram at Royal Centre tram stop, and walked to Nottingham Playhouse – just 10 minutes away on little legs. Arriving at the theatre we were warmly greeted (as always) by very helpful staff who directed us to The Neville Studio. I have visited Nottingham Playhouse many times before, but have not experienced a production in the smaller (100 seat) Neville Studio. It was the perfect space for young children – small enough not to feel intimidating – but theatre-like enough to provide an authentic experience.
As we arrived and took our seats, we were greeted by a bold, colourful set. Watery sea-like sounds played gently in the background. Marina (played by Nottingham’s Hannah Breedon) was already out on the stage chatting to some of the children who had been invited to sit on the fore-stage. Children could choose to sit here, or on the raised theatre-style chairs with their grown-ups. Presently, Marina was joined by co-actor and puppeteer, Ollie West. He introduced the children to Marina’s good friend and loyal companion, Sullivan (or Sully) the turtle. (We knew it was a hand-puppet – but pretended not to notice!). Both actors did a great job of gently introducing the children to the opening characters, and setting the scene for the production.
As the house lights went down, we were invited to join the show’s characters in a magical underwater adventure. This is Hannah Breedon’s professional theatre debut, and her characterisation of Marina should be applauded for its believability and accessibility; all the children were rooting for her! We also loved co-actor Ollie West – who was superb in his ability to take on a multi-role performance. Not only did he bring Sully’s hand-puppet character to life, he also became Titan, Marina’s father, Alex the scientist, and the scary and brilliantly costumed Tamara, the sea-witch! I was particularly impressed with how West was able to react quickly to the children’s excited shout-outs at key moments of tension, skilfully incorporating them into the dialogue of the play.
The actors were very well supported by a beautiful set and costumes. Designed by Emma Howson, the set, with a few clever tweaks from the cast, took the audience on a journey from Marina’s underwater home, to dryland lab via (for me, the most innovative) the surface of the ocean. Well-designed lighting (Sam Osborne) really enhanced the audience’s enjoyment of these different locations. We particularly loved the scene where Marina finds a large book on sea monsters. The timing of the lighting and music (Rob Gathercole) really added to the humour and atmosphere of the scene.
One noticeably innovative aspect of the set was the incorporation of a large video screen into the scenery itself. This was used to flash up cleverly-timed short captions describing key actions in the show. Brought together by Creative Captions Consultant, Emily Howlett and Creative Captions Designer, Matt Powell, these captions added a lovely additional layer of accessibility to the production. There are a range of British Sign Language interpreted, captioned and relaxed performances scheduled for the production’s run. Check out the Nottingham Playhouse website https://nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk/events/the-little-mermaid/ for further details.
As you would expect for a production aimed at children, the show incorporated some great song and dance numbers that had the children clapping and waving their arms in excitement. I could see my granddaughter was swept away by the dancing and music. Joe Venable and Rob Gathercole have come together to create some lively, toe-tapping, ear-worm-creating tunes. At the end of the show, on our way back to the tram, my granddaughter skipped along singing ‘blue to the bottom of the sea’ as unabashed as any six-year-old can be! What a joy to see!
All in all, we had a lovely Nana-and-Granddaughter day out in Nottingham. With great production values and child-friendly accessibility, The Little Mermaid, at Nottingham Playhouse, was the perfect Christmas treat for us both!
Rating: 5/5
Dates: Saturday 6th December – Saturday 3rd January.
Tickets: £14.50 (with special multi-buy offers available)
Remaining shows are bookable here: nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk