Aubrey High School’s production of “The Little Mermaid” began as a retelling of a beloved Disney classic, but as the tale unfolded, it turned into a story of resilience and perseverance for its theater department.
Originally, the musical was set to premiere in late January, but it had to be rescheduled to April because of Winter Storm Fern that hit Texas.
“I’m not going to lie; we had so many obstacles with the show,” Director Emily Rome said with a tearful voice. “It was just like we were getting hit and knocked down and hit and knocked down. They just want to do the show. They love theater, and they just care so much. So, if they show up, I’m going to show up, and we’re going to do it.”
Finding a new date was not an easy task, as it required coordinating schedules with several people, including Paul Norris, the vocal director, and Jason Noyes, the band director.
“As a fine arts group, band, theater, choir, we worked very well together,” Norris said. “It’s a special thing when we all get to come together and show our community what our students can do.”
Once the April dates were set, there were only eight rehearsals remaining and three weeks to find costumes for the new dates.
Rome shared that’s when the community gathered around the theater department even more to contribute in whatever ways they could, with several costumes borrowed from Pilot Point’s Starbright Center for the Arts and Rome’s hometown theater in Graham, Texas.
Parents like Andrea King and her mother Anna Musick thrifted clothes, and everyone helped in the ways they could, from staff, parents and students, to help make the production happen.
Senior Hailey Warren, who’s been involved in theater since sixth grade, performed in her last high school musical, playing the adventurous and lovestruck mermaid Ariel.
“It’s definitely such an amazing experience for having a role such as this with how much this show means to so many people, with it being such a big movie already, and not to mention it just means so much more because of the trials and the challenges that our department and our cast have gone through to get the show to where it is today,” Warren said.
Ariel’s human love interest, Prince Eric, played by Jon Jon Perry, was in his first lead role, a challenge he gladly accepted as an actor and musician.
“I’ve always just loved to be on stage and perform for others and just be able to display the talents that I’m blessed that I’ve been given,” Perry said.
Although the production experienced several road bumps, he shared that it brought the cast and crew closer.
“I’ve made some of the best memories in this program that I ever could have asked for, so I’m forever grateful for that,” Perry said.
It was a surreal but rewarding moment for senior Brook Fales, who played Aquata, one of Ariel’s six older Mersisters, to perform in one of her final productions in high school.
“I’m so happy with where I ended up because I love my character, and I love the time that I get backstage and to spend time with the people that I’ve grown to love,” Fales said.
The musical even had a couple of interactive elements, including Jodee Brockett, who played Scuttle the seagull, one of Ariel’s funny and supportive friends, who got to engage with the audience before the show.
Then afterward, Ariel and a few of her friends posed for pictures outside the auditorium.
There were many faces working behind the scenes to keep the production running smoothly, like stage manager Maya Goines, Mackenzie Houck on the deck crew and Kale Stephenson, who was in charge of the lighting design and operation.
“Lighting not only helps make the actors look good, but it gets the audience really into the show,” Stephenson said.
It was Kenneth Kuykendall’s first time in a technical role, and it gave the actor a new appreciation for the craft.
“When I’m next to Kale Stephenson, who’s on lights, and Eliana Abshier, who’s on sound, there’s switches moving, there’s cues going,” Kuykendall said. “... It’s more complicated than I thought it would be. It’s not just pushing a button. It’s timing and having everything balanced.”
Sophomore Chidimma Okafor, who played the flute and piccolo alongside her peers and professional musicians in her first musical performance, shared a similar appreciation for the experience.
“It’s really just a great thing being able to do this musical and being able to go build on all these skills that Aubrey has fostered,” Okafor said.
The cast and crew consisted of 70 high school students with some breakout roles for several freshmen, like Ellie Bland, who played Sebastian, Ariel’s protective crustacean pal, Makayla King as Ariel’s best friend and bashful fish Flounder, and Silke Hjelmgren as the villainous sea witch Ursula.
“If I did not have a supportive admin like [AHS Principal] Dr. [Vanessa] Zavar and [Superintendent] Dr. [Shannon] Saylor, this show would have gotten canceled,” Rome said. “But because they support and they see that the kids need this and they support the arts and the community supports the arts, we’re able to do things like this, and that’s another reason why I love Aubrey and being in this community. The support just means the world to us.”
