“LIFE UNDER THE SEA IS BETTER THAN ANYTHING THEY GOT UP THERE…”
© ONE IMAGERY Photography
PUBLICITY PHOTOS
© ONE IMAGERY Photography
PRODUCTION PHOTOS
AUDIENCE COMMENTS
“Was there Wednesday. OMG what a show! They just keep getting better & better. BRAVO!!!”
“Brilliant show! We came with our 6 and 3 year old along with a group from Durham Musical Theatre Company last night and had a great time. Some very funny moments and I was really impressed with the tap dancing seagulls. Rare and great to see a company giving it their all rather than getting a dance team in and I'm sure it was great fun to learn! Costumes were really effective and the digital screen worked so well to transport you from sea to land! Fab night and can't wait for the next one”
“What an absolute amazing performance , we loved every minute of it , well done to you all”
“Amazing show ,whole cast ,costumes, backdrop ,everything congratulations Dryburn give yourselves a pat on the back”
“What a brilliant show. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Everything about it was fantastic. Singing/harmonies/dancing/acting/ video wall/band. It’s knocked me out. WELL DONE to everyone Dryburn Theatrical Workshop”
“Superb nights entertainment last night by Dryburn Theatrical Workshop performing the NODA north premiere of the full version of Disneys Little Mermaid. Truly stand out performances by Joe Coulson, Emma Coulson, Ezzy Lou, Pip Lee, Pete Johnson, Lee Passmoor and many many more (who knew Gary Eglington tap danced). All under the directorship of Michelle Coulson choreography of Rebecca Scott and expert musical direction by Luke McGarey (with a wonderful band). The video wall was outstanding and the way forward me thinks. I’ve never seen Park view school so packed. They weren’t disappointed. Truly spectacular.”
“Just watched tonight’s performance of this fabulous production. Wonderful musical score, brilliant backdrops and outstanding performances. A great evening’s entertainment. Thanks to everyone involved.”
“Went Thursday night to see this show was amazing outstanding performances loved every minute of it well done to all involved”
“Saw the show this evening! Thoroughly enjoyed it! Well done to all involved”
“It is brilliant. I’ve had a great night. If you haven’t got a ticket yet GET ONE! You won’t regret it.”
“WOWWWWWWWWWW .... ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT ..... ON LAND !....UNDER THE SEA! ....ANYWHERE ! .....PROBS COMING AGAIN ....TO CLAP MY HANDS OFF”
“I just have to say that from the moment we walked into the auditorium we were instantly transported to under the sea. The effects were amazing and when the show started the backdrop brought the whole show into reality. We all enjoyed it. The grandchildren loved Sebastian and the Chef. So a mega huge WELL DONE to everyone involved. Looking forward to seeing the next show”
“You were all amazing just come from tonight's show. So much talent .. can't wait to see next show”
“What a show!! It was obvious how much this show meant to you all, absolutely brilliant!!”
“Just been tonight. Absolutely fab show. Loved it . Shout out to everyone involved. You were all amazing 🤩”
“It was amazing my 5 year old daughter was transfixed from the start. Super talented thank you”
“Came to see the show on Fri..so much talent..loved it .some fantastic singers .can't wait til next production”
“It was a brilliant show last night! Your all amazing and it was great entertainment!”
“The show was so so good. Amazing talent we really enjoyed it”
“What a fantastic show!!! Loved it from beginning to end. There was so much talent on the stage.Congratulations To you all.”
PROGRAMME
NODA REPORT
It’s always lovely when you can start your report with “this is the North east premier” and my most recent visit to Dryburn Theatrical workshop was just that! The North east Premier of “Disney’s The Little Mermaid” and what a spectacle it was. I can start by saying yet another superb effort from Dryburn.
Immediately of note was a huge LED media screen used throughout for interactive and intricate underwater scenery. I suspect these may be the way forward, it was marvellous. So bright however though I was reliably informed from Martin at Hi-Lights who supplied and installed the screen that it was operating on only 2% output. Really superb mind you, especially for a show set underwater, a backcloth just wouldn’t have had even close to the same impact. Instead we had fantastic underwater set, bright visuals and it really made a huge different. Brilliant piece of kit and I suspect we will see more of them in years to come.
The characters were of course very much recognisable from the very well-known Disney animated version and Dryburn have done an utterly stunning job in bringing them to life in a way in which their own spin was retained and yet the familiarity remained. Hats off to those on costumes and props as there was some incredible detail there and I loved the addition of wheelies for Ariel and Flounder to help them move more fluidly (well done to both actors for also not hurtling off the edge of Park view stage).
I loved the creativity of the “Fathoms below” number from Michelle Coulson, Director who created an entire ship of motley crew, which with their clever movement and the backdrops really made you feel you were aboard a ship. So clever, I really enjoyed it and again some serious attention to detail from the costume department even down to matching buckles on everyone’s shows. Brilliant attention to detail.
Performance wise, Erin Boyle as Ariel was just stunning. Utterly gorgeous on stage and encapsulating the naivety, longing and drive of Ariel the little mermaid beautifully. She sounded just as incredible as she looked with crystal clear vocals as one expects from the role, although I was very nervous of the beautifully crystalled embellished top on her behalf! “Part of Your World” is obviously very well known and a lot of audience members will have been expecting an exact rendition of the movie version. Erin put her own spin on the song and it was gorgeous and well controlled. Really well done. When Ariel loses her voice in a trade with Ursula, all the character is reliant on are there expressions and Erin managed to portray this so well.
I adored Victoria Clark as Flounder, her childlike encapsulation of the role was just wonderful and strangely you forgot you weren’t actually looking at a fish! Great portrayal of the role. Gary Eglington as Skuttle the seagull was brilliant, really encompassing the role and I loved that both him and Flounder never stopped with their flying/swimming mannerisms on stage and I loved some of the intentional mispronunciation of wording from the script. Peter Johnson as King Triton was fabulous, regal, powerful and vulnerable when it came to the safety and well being of his daughters. “If Only” was really lovely.
Stephen Shield as the animated Sebastian the crab was a joy! His comedy looks and timing really made a lot of the scenes. A stand out performance for me in this particular show was by Emma Coulson as Ursula. I loved it! Her look, power, make up, costume, poise, control and domination of the stage was absolutely marvellous in the role. Best performance I’ve seen from Emma. She was perfectly supported by the wonderful Charlotte Humes and Chris Coates as Flotsam and Jetsam respectively who complimented the baddy role perfectly with their comedy. “Poor Unfortunate Souls” was very well acted out and sung by Emma, portraying the powerful and manipulative Ursula incredibly well.
The mersisters looked and sounded gorgeous and their singing harmonies were wonderful. Amazing job Jessica Kerridge, Kirsty Shield, Alicia Cook, Abbey Rutherford, Antonia Johnson and Claire Archer. Well done to the multitalented Luke McGarey as MD for bringing out the best in the cast, some lovely vocal work, a fabulous well controlled orchestra in an extremely hot high-level pit! I did very much enjoy “She’s in Love” from the Mersisters and Flounder, a lovely number.
Joseph Coulson as Prince Eric was surprisingly fabulous! So used to seeing him in silly roles, it was nice to see him playing the Prince and love interest and he did so extremely well. Good to see his versatility.
The ensemble at Dryburn as always were strong, a great support and incredibly enthusiastic in all they did. I loved all the ocean animal characters on stage and again those simple additions of them never stopping movement reflecting them being under the sea. “Under the Sea” was a joy with so much going on, colour, sea creatures, choreography from Rebecca Scott and turtles, jellyfish, seahorse galore, bubbles, enthusiasm and so much energy. I always love a tap number and “Positoovity” by Scuttle and the gulls, choreographed by Jack Hindmarch was absolutely great, such a good opener to Act 2. “Kiss the Girl” was magical, with all of the animals creating a beautiful scene between Ariel and Eric only to be scuppered by Flotsam and Jetsum. There were frogs, swans, butterflies, fireflies, it was really lovely. “If Only” (Quartet) sung by Ariel, Eric, Sebastian and triton was gorgeous. Well done to the performers and Luke for bringing out such a softness and longing in their voices. Really lovely.
However, the absolute standout for me was Chef Louis played by Phil Stabler. Wow! What a weird, wacky, utterly nuts, completely energetic hilarious performance this was. His antics chasing Sebatian around the stage had the audience doubled over laughing the night I was there. Absolutely bonkers role, hilarious with fish everywhere, utterly manic hilarity. Loved it Phil, well done!!
I did find some of the scene changes a little clumsy, but absolutely did not take away from this beautiful performance. Well done all involved! I loved it and you all should be very proud (now stop bugging Michelle for the report and get on with rehearsals for Allo Allo!)
Author: Helen Abraham