Hanford High’s ‘The Little Mermaid’ opens Jan. 29

For anyone who grew up on Disney movies, the music will be familiar — from the lovely Part of Your World to the rollicking Under the Sea.

But a warning: You’re likely to leave humming the tunes.

“The songs always get stuck in your head,” said Dana Small, 17, who’s helping with Hanford High School’s production of The Little Mermaid, which opens Jan. 29.

“I am always singing Under the Sea. All the time. I’ll just be sitting there singing Under the Sea or Kiss the Girl and I don’t even notice,” added Zach Harper, 18, who’s also part of the production.

Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 29-30 and Feb. 3, 5 and 6, with an additional 2 p.m. matinee on Feb. 6.

The Little Mermaid centers on Ariel, daughter of King Triton, who falls in love with Eric, a human prince.

The stage version is similar to the movie, but has some new songs and more characters.

Harper is in charge of costumes — a task that’s been challenging but also fulfilling. The goal was to create costumes that evoked sea creatures without delving into mascot or caricature territory, he said. The technical design is a must see, he added.

“This is one of the biggest technical shows that we have ever done. We have 12 1/2 -foot tentacles that come out of the wall in one of our scenes,” he said.

The performances are special too.

Small, who’s in charge of publicity, said audiences can expect a family-friendly good time.

“It’s very high energy, and the cast is really good at becoming their characters and giving it the Hanford voice,” she said.

The cast includes Quin Hanrahan as Ariel, H. Cole Lobdell as King Triton, Shane Morrow as Prince Eric, Lindsey Carter as Ursula, Carter Lenz as Grimsby, Jesse Gervais as Flounder, Josh Smith as Scuttle and Devin Duggan as Sebastian. Matt Leggett is the director, with vocal direction by Kelly Brown, choreography by Kelsey Wehner and orchestra direction by Kevin Swisher.

Tickets are $12 to $15, depending on the seat. They’re available in the school’s Black Box foyer from 3 to 5 p.m. weekdays, at Adventures Underground in Richland during business hours and at the door.

The school is at 450 Hanford St. in Richland.

This story was originally published January 21, 2016 at 1:19 PM with the headline "Hanford High’s ‘The Little Mermaid’ opens Jan. 29."