Mon River Arts to stage ‘Little Mermaid Jr.’

Five performances are set for the young actors from Thursday night to Sunday afternoon.

Mon River Arts will take audiences on an underwater journey with some of Disney’s most iconic characters in its production of “The Little Mermaid Jr.” this weekend.

The musical runs from Thursday through Sunday at the Grand Theatre in Elizabeth. Performances are set for 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday.

“The Little Mermaid Jr.,” based on the Disney film and the fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen, follows the story of Ariel (Adeline Ripley), a mermaid who wishes for a life on land.

The cast and crew have been rehearsing three times per week over the past two months in preparation for opening night.

“I’m extremely happy and proud of this cast and staff,” said Lori Kolodziej, Mon River Arts executive director.

Director Samantha Mitchell emphasized the camaraderie among the cast of kids.

“Some fun moments have just been watching them growing closer together,” Mitchell said. “A lot of these kids do know each other, but we have a few kids that have never done a show here before. So there’s a lot of new kids, and they open their arms. Even though some of these kids have been doing shows here since they’ve been 8 years old, they have no problems welcoming all these new friends. And seeing that is probably what brings me the most joy.”

Craig Hermosillo, a Bethel Park resident and eighth-grader at Falk Laboratory School in Pittsburgh, plays the role of Sebastian. Hermosillo said the other kids in the cast have been “very nice” to him.

“I haven’t been to the theater in a while, and they were all super inviting,” Hermosillo said. “I fit in perfectly. I was very happy.”

Sofia Glover, an eighth-grader in the West Mifflin Area School District who plays Ursula, has performed in other shows for Mon River Arts and said part of the reason she continues to do so is due to the “nice” people among the cast, crew and staff.

Mitchell said the kids can be pretty silly sometimes too.

“The boys know all the girls’ dances, so they’ll stand off to the side while we’re rehearsing, and they will do the dances with the mermaid sisters,” Mitchell said. “So there was a lot of laughing, and getting them to focus is pretty difficult because they are all really good friends.”

Mitchell hopes the kids involved in the production pursue their dreams no matter how unlikely they may be, like Ariel in the musical.

“The little mermaid, she’s just looking to chase her dream, and she is willing to do anything to be able to achieve it,” she said.

Tickets for “The Little Mermaid Jr.” cost $15 and are available at monriverarts.org, but there were only a few seats left for each performance as of press time.

“Truthfully, this has been an amazing group of kids, and they have really come together to put on a great show,” Mitchell said.

Cast list:

Adeline Ripley (Ariel), Sofia Glover (Ursula), Leah Morgan (Flounder), Craig Hermosillo (Sebastian), Julianna Mullaugh (Scuttle), Christian Kolcun (Prince Eric), Harlow Spalla (Chef Louis and Aquata), Jake Forbes (Grimsby), Adriana Popich (Flotsam), Faith Flanigan (Jetsam), Aaron Haramic (King Triton), Lily Mull (Attina), Catherine Radinick (Alana), Rainey Dankert (Arista), Jacksyn Kelley-Jarsulic (Andrina), Penny Thompson (Adella), Cody Mough (Pilot), Elliette Gaborek (Seahorse), Savannah Hoffer (Carlotta), Isabelle Lucas (Princess Helga), MJ Giunta (Princess Genvieve) and Chloe Blank (Princess Katherine.)