Earlier this month, Kidding Around took us under the sea with their most recent production, The Little Mermaid! Fans flipped at a chance to see it, by the second day of ticketing, the show was four times over-reserved. When the actual performances rolled around, the Cabaret was packed and tickets were sold out. After the shows at Emerson, the cast and crew packed up their set and brought the production to Temple Beth Elohim in Newton. There, they performed in front of a crowd of over 300 people and many of the attendees were children.
It’s obvious that the show was well received by its audiences, and why wouldn’t it be? With a classic story such as The Little Mermaid, it’s hard not to get lost in all the fun and whimsy. However, Kidding Around’s production was different because it utilized puppetry to help tell the story. The puppets were made of recyclable materials to bring an element of environmental awareness. They were used to create mermaids’ tails and Ursula’s tentacles as well as for fish and seagulls.
It took many people to make the production come together so swimmingly, but for a musical to be, well, a musical, the two most important aspects are dancing and singing. That’s why we sat down with the show’s choreographer, Katy Corbus, and music director, Jacob Houser. Read on to hear more about the success of the production and learn more about why it was unique!
Name: Katy Corbus
Year: Sophomores
Major: Musical Theatre
Name: Jacob Houser
Year: Sophomore
Major: Theatre Studies with concentration in Music Direction
HC: What was different about Kidding Around’s version of The Little Mermaid?
Katy: Our director’s concept was based on the idea that it should look and feel like children actually created the show. That comes across in the set, the movement, and the puppets add that too.
Jacob: We didn’t want it to be a carbon copy. So in our version, it’s kids recreating one of their favorite movies. Basically we wanted to show it as an ode from these kids to the original movie.
HC: How did you get involved with the production in the first place?
Katy: Brian Dratch [the director] asked me in the middle of spring semester last year. We had worked together in the past. He was both Jacob and my director for a show. Then he told me about the project and asked me if I wanted to come on and I agreed.
Jacob: First Brian actually asked me to do a different show– Cabaret. We had worked together previously because I had accompanied on the piano for him when he was recording a song for an audition. So he knew I had that skillset, and asked me to join Cabaret. Then he said that he was pitching another show and told me the concept. I said okay, told him he could put my resume in with the production team, and we got it!
HC: Katy, can you talk about your duties and your overall experience with choreographing the show?
Katy: With this show, choreography was a little bit different than it might be in another setting because the show didn’t call for super technical choreography, but it did need to really emulate the style and the feel that we were going for. So I worked a lot collaboratively with Brian on where to have the movements be more freestyle-ensemble based, and where to have more specific choreography. But there were some big dance numbers that I started to work on before we got here in the fall. Then I taught them to the cast. We integrated some of the things that they come up with on their own, and pieces that Brian wanted to add in, to create sort of diverse, exciting pieces on stage.
HC: Jacob, what was it like to music direct this production?
Jacob: I wanted to strike a balance between bringing something new to the sound and what this particularly cast had to offer while staying the same to the stylistic vibe that the Broadway show and film had. There were a couple of days of really long musical rehearsals where we teach all the music to the entire cast. This was so we could make sure it’s sounded correct and that the harmonies were locked in how we wanted them. For a normal production I would be accompanying live on the piano but for this specific production, because it was a junior production, we did have to use instrumental tracks provided to us from the licensing company. So it was really about the cast knowing the timing and how they fit into an instrumental track, which is completely different than getting timing correct with a live orchestra.
HC: What was your favorite number to choreograph or music direct?
Katy: “She’s In Love” was the number where the mersisters are all talking about Ariel and how she’s been acting really strange lately and then they realize that she’s in love. It was a really cool process because I choreographed the dance and taught it to the girls, and Travis. Brian had a few extra things that he added into that made it cool and special. And then later on we had to add in all the mersisters and their tails. It just turned out so cool looking and the ensemble just really took off with it and really made it their own. It was really high energy and exciting for the audience too.
Jacob: Mine is definitely the same one as Katy. I knew this going into the show, before we even casted it, because it’s just so fun. It’s a big belt-y number, and the cast at first was a little bit timid, a little bit shy. They didn’t know each other or us, but by performance time it was just a blast to listen to.
HC: How did it feel to perform for the children at the synagogue in Newton?
Katy: For a lot of the kids there it was probably the first show that they had seen and that just made the cast experience that much more meaningful– because they knew they were introducing the kids to musical theatre, and could really be making an impact on their lives or what they want to do. We remember the first show we saw that inspired us to do this so that was really neat. It’s a rare opportunity that we got to take advantage of.
Jacob: It was just cool to bring a show that was intended for very young audience to an actual young audience. To see the show performed with it’s original intent was great.
HC: What’s your dream show to choreograph or music direct?
Katy: Choreographing Pippin would be very fun because it’s a combination of really cool movements and circus-type elements.
Jacob: Any Sondheim show, for instance Into the Woods or Sunday in the Park with George.
HC: What are your plans for the rest of the semester and for the spring?
Katy: I’m a dancer in Thoroughly Modern Millie, which is put on by the Musical Theater Society and goes up in December. Next semester I plan on doing some auditions for theater over the summer and dancing. I’m keeping my schedule open for next semester; I don’t have any plans set in stone.
Jacob: I’m doing a bunch of shadowing of professional music directors both here and at Brandeis. I’m music directing Cabaret for the Musical Theatre Society next semester. And some other stuff I’m not allowed to say… they’re to be determined.