Magical Starlight Theatre presents 'The Little Mermaid'

Magical Starlight Theatre will present the musical, "The Little Mermaid" Jan. 12-14, 19-21 at Naperville Central High School auditorium.

The 73-member cast, one of the largest of any Magical Starlight Theatre production, tells the familiar Disney story with eye-catching visuals, a rich vocal and orchestral sound and a passion to engage with the audience.

"'The Little Mermaid' is such a family story," said Kris Visher, director. "Parents and young people everywhere can relate to Ariel's journey of leaving home."

Isabella Newhuis, a senior at Benet Academy who has the lead role as Ariel, agrees. "Every parent should resonate with King Triton; it's hard to let go of your child. I know that the ending scene where Ariel says goodbye to her father will hit me hard as I think about leaving for college next year."

The Magical Starlight Theatre cast and crew are enjoying the technical and visual challenges of presenting Disney's under-the-sea musical. "We go from surface to land to underwater in just seconds," explained Visher. "There's actually very little set. The characters take the audience to the different settings, for example, creating a living sea."

Tickets for this family-friendly musical may be purchased at www.napervilleparks.org, at any Naperville Park District community relations desk, or by calling (630) 848-5000. A sign language interpreter will be present at the 5:30 p.m. Jan. 13 show and at the 1:30 p.m. Jan. 22 performance.

For a complete list of performance times, visit www.napervilleparks.org.

Magical Starlight Theatre invites all interested elementary school students to enter an essay contest to win four complimentary tickets to the opening night performance.

Students in grades 1-8 may enter by submitting an essay, with a different question and guidelines for each age group. Essays are due by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 1, 2018.

Magical Starlight Theatre is a program of the Naperville Park District and is supported by hundreds of volunteers and by sponsors Rose Pest Solutions, Home Advisor, Naperville Bank and Trust, and Edward Jones.