Lexington Broadway veteran makes ‘Mermaid’ musical part of our world

From its beginning, the idea behind the Lexington Theatre Company was that Lexington native and Broadway veteran Lyndy Franklin Smith and her husband and fellow Broadway vet Jeromy Smith were bringing their experience back to Lexington to produce professional productions featuring established stage actors and rising stars.

Franklin Smith’s most literal example of bringing it home was in 2018, when she directed “A Chorus Line,” her first Broadway show in which she performed and served as the assistant dance captain in the 2006 revival. This summer, she brings her other Broadway credit home with “The Little Mermaid,” which she was in from January 2008 to August 2009.

“I feel, again, really lucky that I had the experience to work on the piece in New York, and work with the original creative teams, again, knowing sort of the intention, the ‘why’ behind all of the musical numbers in the staging and why it was done the way it was done,” Franklin Smith said Monday morning in the Lexington Opera House lobby as the company entered the final days preparing to bring the Disney classic to life on stage.

How ‘Little Mermaid’ musical is different

Of course, while “Chorus Line” is a Broadway legend, “Little Mermaid” owes its notoriety to the 1989 film widely credited with reviving Disney animation. But Franklin Smith is quick to note that it was also the film that helped fuse Broadway and Disney, which has gone on to bring many of its films to the stage including “The Lion King” and “Beauty and the Beast.”

Lyricist Howard Ashman and composer Alan Menken both came from Broadway, “Little Shop of Horrors” being their prior big success, infusing the music with a Broadway sensibility.

“This was kind of the beginning of their work and in the Disney canon,” Franklin Smith said. “Their ideas of infusing these Disney movie musicals with Broadway actors voicing these parts … really changed the way that animated movie musicals were made.

“And then we see the trend, the continuation of that journey with Disney on Broadway. Once these animated classics became so popular, then it was just a natural progression.”

While Franklin did perform in the original Broadway production of “Little Mermaid,” she said the version the Lexington Theatre Company is presenting will be a bit different. The musical did not take the traditional route from New York to a national tour, but instead was restructured and presented as a sort of co-production between several large regional theaters around the country that went on limited tours that included Louisville and Cincinnati.

What will absolutely be on stage for Lexington audiences this weekend will be favorite characters such as Ariel, Prince Eric, King Triton, Ursula, Scuttle, and Sebastian, songs like “Under the Sea,” “Part of Your World,” and “Kiss the Girl,” and the familiar look, brought to life on stage.

Lexington Theatre Company 2022 season

For the entire Lexington Theatre Company crew, “Little Mermaid” and the Aug. 4 to 6 production of “Chicago” have been a long-time coming.

“This whole season was supposed to happen in 2020,” Franklin Smith said. “We had announced and “Disney’s Little Mermaid” and “Chicago” … and essentially, when COVID hit, everything got to sort of put on hold. But our team has been very patiently waiting. And so really, these shows are almost three years in the making, at this point.”

Chicago brings another familiar name from Franklin Smith’s resume: Bob Fosse and his distinctive choreography. While she was not in “Chicago,” Franklin Smith’s first national tour was the revue “Fosse,” featuring some of his most iconic choreography. Franklin Smith is directing “Mermaid” but will hand the reigns to director and choreographer Patrick O’Neill, a “Chicago” tour veteran.

Franklin Smith is excited to have her friend she has known since “Chorus Line” helm “Chicago,” but admits, “it will be hard for me to stay on the sidelines and keep my feet still for that one.”

‘Disney’s The Little Mermaid’

When: 7:30 p.m. July 14 and 15, 1 and 7:30 p.m. July 16, and 1 and 6:30 p.m. July 17

Where: Lexington Opera House, 401 W. Short St.

Tickets: $36-$86

Online: lexingtontheatrecompany.org

Call: 859-233-3535