Atlantis Productions, which recently staged the hit musical “Next to Normal” and will soon open the Elton John/Tim Rice pop rock musical “Aida,” has found its mermaid Ariel and Prince Eric for its upcoming staging of the Broadway musical “The Little Mermaid,” which runs November 18-December 11, 2011 at the Meralco Theater.
Rachelle Anne Go is one of the most awarded singers of her generation. She was the grand winner of “Search for a Star” in 2004 and won the Silver Medal that same year at the Shanghai Music Festival. She currently appears in GMA-7’s “Party Pilipinas” and is managed by Viva Entertainment.
Singing champion Erik Santos will likewise make his professional musical-theater debut as the Prince in “The Little Mermaid.” Erik shot to fame when he won the first “Star in a Million” competition, since then becoming a multi-awarded recording and concert artist and a mainstay of “ASAP XV!”
Based on one of the most beloved Disney films of all time and the classic Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale, the stage adaptation of “The Little Mermaid” will feature the movie's most popular songs--including “Part of Your World,” “Kiss the Girl” and the Academy Award-winning Best Original Song, “Under the Sea”--by the renowned songwriting team of Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, as well as 10 new songs by Menken and Glenn Slater, plus a book by Tony-winning playwright Doug Wright.
Atlantis' production of “The Little Mermaid” will be directed by Bobby Garcia and Chari Arespacochaga, who were in Hawaii last year to take an Asian puppetry workshop which they will apply in creating many of the production's sea creatures.
Garcia says, “We are thrilled, once again, to bring another beloved Disney classic to the Philippine Stage. Disney’s 'The Little Mermaid' started the renaissance of Disney’s animation department and has some of the most memorable songs written for an animation classic. We are creating a 'Little Mermaid' unlike any other. It will be an exciting fusion of East-meets-West elements. Our underwater kingdom will be completely Asian in theme and our above-water world will be Western, representing two different worlds. We will also be using traditional forms of Asian and Western puppetry including Wayang shadow play, bunraku, nang kaloung and Western hand puppetry. We can’t wait to begin!”
A complete cast will be announced at a future date. Atlantis Productions’ staging of Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” is made possible through a special licensing agreement with Music Theatre International.
With choreography by Cecile Martinez, set design by Lex Marcos, costume design by Erik Pineda, lighting design by Jay Aranda, puppetry design and execution by Liz and Benny Batoctoy and Sam Fuentes, and vocal coaching by ManMan Angsico.
Tickets on sale now! For more information, call Atlantis Productions 8927078 or 8401187.
