East Van Panto: The Little Mermaid

York Theatre until January 1, 2023
Ticket from $35 at www.thecultch.com or 604-251-1363

Posted November 25, 2022

Ah, the East Van Panto. I’ve said it before but, really, this is the best one ever. The costumes by Alaia Hamer are fantastic – the fish are so darned googly-eyed and fishy; Ursula, the octopus (portrayed by the fearless, ageless and priceless Dawn Petten), is an extravaganza of red velvet arms arranged like a bustle around a shimmery red sequined gown; the big pinchers on Sebastian, the hermit crab (irrepressible Mark Chavez) living in a discarded coffee cup, are so expressive; and the jellyfish are simply jaw-droppingly beautiful. Wait until you see Cindy Mochizuki’s watery backdrop to John Webber’s set that’s so fluidly lit by Sophie Tang. When the Purple Slime of Despair takes over the York stage it’s yucky but a vision in glowing purple loveliness. While the audience is hollering, “Oh, no you don’t” or “Look behind you”, I’m blown away by how delightfully under-watery the whole show, under Meg Roe’s direction, looks.

And, of course, how it sounds. Arrangements of  sixteen popular songs and new, made-for-the-Panto lyrics are by the ever-inventive, smart and sassy  Veda Hille with the collaboration of the playwright.  Unfortunately, Hille was not able to perform the night I attended; Roisin  Adams stepped up capably to the keyboard in her stead. Barry Mirochnick, as always, is the lively percussionist with, in this Panto, magical powers.

Written by Sonja Bennett, this charmingly silly take on Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid and Disney’s 1989 animated film, takes us underwater at New Brighton Beach so not only is this Panto very local – as are all the East Van Pantos – but it packs a passionate yet light-hearted punch for us to clean up our act. If we love our oceans, we have to stop dumping garbage into them.

The big switch from Andersen’s 19^th century fairy tale is that teenaged human Ariel (Amanda Sum) falls in love with mermaid Eeer-k (Ghazal Azarbad) and, unhappy at home with her tire dealer dad (Andrew Wheeler) – aka The King of Tire Land – Ariel makes a deal with the nasty Ursula – aka The Evil Queen of the Sea – to become a mermaid so she can pursue a romance with Eeer-k. The trade-off? Ariel loses her legs and her voice unless she shares a kiss with Eeer-k before the end of the day, after which she turns into a statue. But how to make her love known to Eeer-k without a voice?

Amanda Sum should never make such a deal: she’s note perfect and so sweetly delivers her songs as well as breaking into some interestingly expressive moves. Andrew Wheeler brings tears to our eyes when, as Ariel’s dad, he sings, “I Just Want My Daughter Back” and Ghazal Azarbad blows the York apart when she belts out a song.

Full of puns, pop culture and global warming references (one in Act 2 is a laugh-out-loud, OMG hilarious), this Little Mermaid is delightful for two full hours less an intermission. It’s a seasonal tradition now in its 10^th year and it will sell out so don’t miss out; make reservations early.

Inflation may have hit everything from the price of a real, grown-in-BC Christmas tree to the candles for Hanukkah, but the cost of admission in 2020 started at $35 and starts at $35 this year, too. East Van Panto: The Little Mermaid – what a wonderful gift from everyone at Theatre Replacement and The Cultch.