Joseph Shininger

Kids make a splash in KidsPlay’s ‘Mermaid in Miami’

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By John Lyle Belden

Being a former writer and “Arts Editor” at the Daily Reporter in Greenfield, I have long followed and been a booster of KidsPlay Inc., the local children’s theatre featuring kids in grades 3-8 from all over the area. Under the direction of Christine Schaefer, the company puts on a high-quality show, and has helped to develop a lot of talent – a number of central Indiana performers are former KidsPlayers, and now there are alumni with their own children in the program.

Of course, I bring this up because this week is the KidsPlay Inc. fall production, the quirky comedy “Mermaid in Miami” by Wade Bradford. Directed by Schaefer with Alexandra Kern, choreography by Frances Hull and Amy Studebaker, this take on “The Little Mermaid” has a contemporary setting, yet is in a surprising way true to the Hans Christian Andersen story.

An old fisherman, Ernie (Joseph Shininger), happens to come across a young mermaid, Breeze (Olivia Greer), on the run from her tyrannical father Emperor Tropico (Matthew Hentz). As she had escaped with her mother, now missing, the angry monarch asks Ernie if he has seen two mermaids, so he honestly answers “no,” helping Breeze to escape. Grateful, she stays in the safety of the lagoon the fisherman calls home, located just a beach away from Miami, Florida.

Meanwhile, on that beach, hot Latin dancer Rico (Jaxon Brittsan) is ready for the local dance contest, he just needs a partner. The Lambada sisters (Zora Coe and Ashley Pipkin) are injured, and best friend Grace (Ella Miesse) he only sees as his tailor. But hearing of the opportunity, Breeze makes a deal with the Swamp Hag (Bella Turner) for legs so he can join Rico in the dance.

Naturally, those legs come at a cost.

The large cast also includes Anthony Stunda and Josie Joyner as dolphins Ebb and Flo, who provide a lot of the punchlines; Brodie Stout-England as Prince Dorkus, the Emperor’s goofy hand-picked fiance for Breeze; Jordan Kuker as the mysterious Spirit of the Air; Hank Lee and Ava Peters as local reporters; Abbagail Gantt and Cooper Schmitt as vendors with well-timed wares; and Jack Joyner, Grace McCaw, and Lucy Reed, as an entertaining trio of crabs.

This show has excellent performances throughout. Greer shows off some great physical comedy, as she nimbly portrays a wobbly girl who just got her legs minutes ago, right through the obligatory dance montage where she learns to move with rhythm.

Turner is appropriately menacing, and manages to keep a Caribbean accent without it slipping into caricature. Hentz is naturally haughty, while Shininger plays a good go-with-the-flow guy. Miesse stitches together a role with surprising range. Stout-England is too much of a doofus to dislike, despite his role in Tropico’s plot.

Brittsan not only manages to stay likable even while being a bit cheesey, but also he, Coe and Pipkin show off some genuine dance flair, including leading the traditional opening dance number before the play.

As usual, this show is a lot of fun, but there is some substance with the silly, especially in the way this story ends. Performances are 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 8-10, at the H.J. Ricks Centre for the Arts, 122 W. Main St. (US 40) in downtown Greenfield. Tickets are just $5 at the door.

It’s no myth: KidsPlay an excellent display of young talent

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By John Lyle Belden

KidsPlay Inc. provides an excellent opportunity for aspiring performers, grades 3 to 8, to acquire and hone their skills. And that talent is put to great use in their spring production, “Fairy Tale Confidential.”

The play is presented as an expose of various stories we see or read (or pretend we’ve read, as the narrator points out) as we grow up. Eight scenes tackle Grimm tales, the works of Charles Dickens and Robert Louis Stevenson, the legends of certain guys in green tights, and even what happens after a boy gets the deed to a famous chocolate factory.

KidsPlay director Christine Schaefer always sets high standards, bringing out the best from her young actors, but this show — with its sharp gags and smooth blend of timeless charm and today’s attitude — is one of their best productions I’ve seen in more of a decade of watching this company work.

One bittersweet aspect of the spring show is that it is the last for eighth-grade members, who can move on to high school productions and beyond (several actors around central Indiana are KidsPlay “graduates”). There are 11 in this production, nearly all with speaking roles: Olivia Alldredge, as a friendly witch with a candy house; Elise Denger, a Wendy on a mission; David Hull, as the King of Everything; Trey Smith, as Dr. Jekyll’s Assistant; Ian Veldes, as “King of Comedy” Dickens; Ethan Stearns, as Stevenson; Ben Thompson, as Peter Pan; Owen Sickels, as narrator Warren Peace; Heaven Keesling, who is in the nifty opening dance number; Wesley Olin, as candymaker “Billy Bonkers;” and Max Everhart, as Hansel.

Other notables in this vast cast include Joseph Shininger as Rumplestiltskin and Bella Turner as the girl who is awful at names; Cialey Michalisko in an impressive debut as the secret to Dickens’ success; Olivia Greer as Sleeping Beauty and Josie Joyner as Cinderella, who could use a nap; Brayden Diehl as newly-minted sweets tycoon Charles and Corbin Elliott a hoot as his Grandpa; Ashley Pipkin as a sassy Gretel; Matthew Hentz as Dr. Jekyll and his hilarious alter ego; Jaxon Brittsan and Madison Raisor as Robin Hood and his sister, Roxie; Zora Coe as temperamental Tinkerbell; and third graders Anthony Stunda and Carter Pipkin off to a good start as Darling brothers John and Michael.

It’s worth the drive out to Greenfield — playing at the Ricks Centre for the Arts, 122 W. Main St. (US 40), 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday (April 12-14) — especially at only $5 a ticket. Advance tickets are available at Hometown Comics, 1040 N. State St. (SR 9), Greenfield.