Want to go?
Lee County High School’s production of The Little Mermaid Jr. continues tonight at 7 p.m. and will have shows at 2 and 7 p.m. on Saturday. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students and can be purchased at the door, on the GoFan app or online here.
Lorelei Garrity has spent a lot of time in her young life on the stage, from summer youth conservatory productions at Temple Theatre to musicals at Lee County High School. This fall, she has remained on the other side of the curtain, co-directing (alongside Aiden Monforto) her first production for LCHS’ drama department.
Garrity is the student director of The Little Mermaid Jr., which held its successful opening night on Thursday and will have three more shows tonight at 7 p.m. and on Saturday at 2 and 7 p.m.
The musical, which includes a massive cast of more than 50 students (many of them still in elementary school), began rehearsals back on Sept. 9, meaning Garrity has had less than two months to put everything together. She says it’s been a fun, but challenging experience.
“Everything’s been different, but it was really nice to get a different view on things and be on this side of it all,” she said. “The most challenging part was definitely trying to get the [younger] kids to listen, because a lot of these kids are brand new and have never done a show before. But it was also a good way to get to know them and find out what they respond best to.”
The Little Mermaid Jr. features several LCHS students, including Abby Borrell in the role of Ariel, Cristian Alvarez as Prince Eric and Bella Miller as Ursula, among others. The musical includes memorable songs from the movie like “Kiss the Girl,” “Under the Sea,” “Part of Your World” and “Poor Unfortunate Souls,” and songs not found in the Disney film like “Fathoms Below,” “Daughters of Triton” and “She’s in Love.”
For Garrity, the most enjoyable part of leading the show has been getting to see her and Monforto’s vision put on stage.
“I think [the audience] will love every part of it, but definitely the songs and costumes, because the costumes are so bright and colorful; it just brings so much light and fun to the stage,” she said. “And being able to incorporate our own twists was really a fun thing to do — we decided that we wanted ‘merfolk’ to have Heelys [shoes with wheels] so that it looks like they are swimming around the stage.”
She added, “I’m proud of everyone in this show, and I’m very happy with how great the show has been.”
— reporting by LCHS freshman Hayley Liggett
