Review: Pieni merenneito
This grand musical is not to be missed! – 4 reasons why Helsinki City Theatre’s The Little Mermaid is a mesmerizing performance The Disney musical The Little Mermaid is the musical of autumn 2019. We have listed 4 reasons why you should see the work at the Helsinki City Theatre, whether you are a child, a young person or a slightly older fan of musicals.
Disney’s musical The Little Mermaid has finally arrived in Finland! The musical, which premiered on Broadway in New York in 2008 and is based on a Disney film and fairy tale by Uncle H.C. Andersen, is absolutely mesmerizing to watch for all ages.
We have listed four reasons why the Helsinki City Theatre’s production is worth seeing.
1. Stunning Young Stars
Fortunately, the days when it was difficult to find actors in Finland who could also dance and sing are far away. In recent years, musical audiences have become accustomed to seeing brilliant young theatre makers in Finland, whose skills are sufficient not only for the stages in Finland, but also for the famous Broadway or London.
Helsinki City Theatre’s The Little Mermaid will once again introduce the audience to new talents. The mermaid Ariel is played by the absolutely charming Sonja Pajunoja, who has not only a wonderful voice but also the pruning and grace needed for the role of Ariel.
Martti Manninen, who plays Prince Erik, succeeds just as well in his own role and is a handsome man who makes the socks roll in the audience at least as vividly as the mermaids on stage – of course, they have skilful whirling tails.
However, in the opinion of my nine-year-old companion, the brightest person on stage was 13-year-old Alek Pèrez Lahtinen, who played the Splash Fish, who, according to my companion, was funny, cute and good at singing and dancing. The role of Splash is played by four boys, of whom it was Lahtinen’s turn at the premiere.
Of the more experienced actors, special thanks are due to Sanna Saarijärvi, who was horribly scary, fierce and convincing in the role of the disgusting witch Ursula.
A few performances, such as Erik’s guardian Yrjö, were plagued by unclear articulation in the speech parts, but this will probably be corrected once the tension of the premiere has subsided.
2. They really swim like fish!
How do mermaids and fish swim on stage? This is what my companion thought about beforehand.
At the Helsinki City Theatre, director Samuel Harjanne and choreographer Gunilla Olsson-Karlsson had succeeded in solving the matter in a startling way.
The actors seemed to swim both in scenes where their feet were firmly on the stage and in scenes where they were lifted into the air to “swim” on almost invisible wires. The actors’ movements were natural and skillful, for example, Ariel’s somersaults in the water really looked like she was swimming in the depths of the oceans.
The viewer was left wondering how good core muscles are needed to be able to rock their upper body to the beat of the waves throughout the 2.5-hour performance.
3. What glitter!
“You can never have too much glitter in life,” said one of the guests as he climbed into his seat before the premiere began. The sentence is of course true and was especially suitable for this implementation.
The set design, costumes, lighting and video design of The Little Mermaid were stunning feats of skill from the Helsinki City Theatre team. The glitter was Disney-esque overkill, but of course it suited this musical.
“A bit weird,” my companion said at some points, but as a glitter lover (he’s no different from his peers in this respect either), he didn’t mean the visual sparkle so much as the syrupiest parts of the script.
4. A story with a message that is relevant to this day
We have all grown to understand the lessons of old fairy tales, and Disney has also kept them on display in its implementations, often very underlined. The Little Mermaid is no exception. But as director Samuel Harjanne said in the TV news before the premiere, The Little Mermaid also contains reflections that are particularly suitable for this time.
Ariel does not feel at home in her own body or in the world she was born into. It is difficult for a father to accept his daughter’s longing for something other than what he is used to. In the end, however, true love overcomes all obstacles and Ariel is allowed to change into who she wants.
A fresh message that you can stop to ponder once you have wiped all the glitter from the show.