I saw The Little Mermaid musical and it did not disappoint. The musical had the biggest budget out of all musicals in Finland, and it really showed. Everything was so grand and great. The fish costumes of the actors had so many details, and even though I still don't like how Ariel's dress is pink since it does not fit with her red hair, her dress had nice details. The sets were also very big and imposing. My favorite sets were easily the ship at the beginning and the castle at the end. The swimming effect was done beautifully, and it really looked like the actors were swimming in water. The show has been going on since last autumn, but because of the coronavirus it had been cancelled. I had tickets for this year's spring, but because of the virus, it had been cancelled. But I had the chance of getting new tickets for this autumn.
I had the impression, that Sonja Pajunoja would be playing Ariel. Apparently she had left the show, and Ingrid Gräsbeck was playing her. I was slightly disappointed, since I had heard so much about her and how good she was, but I really liked Ingrid Gräsbeck's Ariel. She looked great and acted nicely, and her singing voice was good, but honestly when I heard it I was missing something. Not sure what, because she had a nice voice and sung with emotion.
Martti Manninen's Eric was pretty good also. Manninen was part of the original cast, and I really liked his Eric. He had energy and he sung well, but like with Ingrid Gräsbeck's Ariel, I thought his singing was missing something. But I liked him and the way he acted Eric.
King Triton was acted by Mikko Vihma and I really liked liked his Triton. He had a powerful voice and a powerful aura, and he acted his role well. He was easily one of my favorites from the show, and Triton's portrayal was one of the best in the whole musical. This was second time I have seen Mikko Vihma in a musical, the first one being Helsinki's Tanz der Vampire where he played von Krolock. Even though I liked his von Krolock he was not the best actor for the character I've seen, and I have to say, his Triton was a lot better.
Ursula was played by Sanna Saarijärvi, and she easily became my favorite character in the show. She was just amazing, her looks, her singing, her acting. Her tentacles were moved by eight people, and their movement was so satisfying. Her songs Daddy's Little Angel and Poor Unfortunate Souls were my favorite scenes in the musical. I absolutely loved her, and the reason I want to see this musical again is because I want to see her again.
Sebastian was played by Tero Koponen and his Sebastian was fun. Even though he might have over-acted a bit, it fit the character and the mood of the musical. Under the Sea is one of my favorite Disney songs and even though the lyrics were changed. I also really liked his way of singing, it sounded kind of similar to the Finnish dub of The Little Mermaid.
Flounder was played by Valo Eklund, and he was super cute. I usually don't really like child actors in musicals, but he played his part well. His singing was pretty good for his age, and like I already said, he was so cute that I had to like him.
Scuttle was played by Sami Paasila, and I have to say he was the only thing in the whole musical that I did not like. I have not seen The Little Mermaid movie since I was a young child, and I have absolutely no memory how Scuttle was in the film, but I did not like his portrayal here. He was pretty annoying and over-acted, but this is a kids musical, and Scuttle was clearly aimed for children.
Tuomas Uusitalo was Chef Louis, and like I said, I have not seen the movie for so long time that I didn't have any memories from the character. I was surprised how over the top he was, and how "mad" he was - but when I saw his scenes from YouTube, it was the point.
Like I said earlier, I have not seen the movie in many many years and I don't really have any memories from it. I did not watch any scenes before the movie or watched any scenes from other versions of this musical, since I wanted to be surprised. I listened the Broadway version of this musical, and even though I have to say I prefer Sierra Boggess's singing voice, I really liked the Finnish version of the musical. This was my second seeing a Disney musical live, first being The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and even though I loved this musical, the more serious and mature Hunchback of Notre Dame takes the cake. I really wish I could have seen it second time, but I'm glad I got to see the last show they did before they had the cancel because of the coronavirus. Anyway, I hope you liked my thoughts about this musical. :)
