JADAR

★★★★☆

Disney has allowed iconic villains Maleficent and Cruella de Vil to tell their sides of the story but not Ursula, arguably the greatest villain of all (with the greatest villain song, period). Fortunately, Fat Rascal Theatre are here to right that wrong, with a revisionist parody of The Little Mermaid. Unfortunate: The Untold Story of Sea Witch – The Musical Parody allows Ursula to tell the gals and gays what really happened under the sea all those years ago.

Unfortunate is probably one of the most successful parody shows of all time. It has hardly come up for air since it first splashed on to the scene at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2019. This is its third run at Lowry in Salford since 2022. The success of the show is down not only to the brilliant, blistering, laugh-out-loud material – which is just as funny the third time around – but also because it is carefully rewritten and redesigned each time it comes back to shore, offering returning audiences a unique experience every time they see it.

Unfortunate is a loving parody of The Little Mermaid. Writers Robyn Grant (also director) and Daniel Foxx clearly adore Disney but they also recognise its flaws. Whilst the classic era of Disney was rather sexist, the 1990s saw a wave of strong (semi) independent women. These Princesses were more educated and bold than their predecessors but still motivated by romantic love and willing to change themselves for men (in contrast to more recent Princesses, who are not merely damsels in distress). Ariel is a passionate collector who longs to break free from suppression and restriction but a random man is her ultimate motivation. She radically alters her appearance to be with him, leaving behind all her loved ones.

Unfortunate pokes fun at this sexist self-sacrifice though it does Ariel a disservice by portraying her as a bumbling bimbo. That said, her solo number, ‘Where the Dicks Are’ (a parody of ‘Part of Your World’), is a musical masterpiece that will ruin your childhood in the best way. Disney characters are completely de-sexed (with Princes having flat crotches!) but Unfortunate recognises that even talking fish like sex!

Last time, Ariel was played by drag queen River Medway, which felt subversive, especially because Ursula, the film’s grotesque villain, was based on drag queen Divine. There is a debate about whether this was a tribute or offensive to Divine, but regardless, Ursula has been (re)claimed as a queer icon. In Unfortunate, Ursula has been portrayed by a Black woman, a gay woman, and a trans woman, which seems to represent giving a voice to the voiceless (the banished sea witch literally steals the voice of a privileged princess).

And, oh, what voices these performers have! Unfortunate may be a fringe parody but its cast is made up of fantastic professional performers. The vivacious Sam Buttery brings a real vulnerability to Ursula but is no less of a bad bitch. She chews up the scenery and leaves no crumbs.

Dance Captain and Resident Director Allie Dart, who has portrayed Sebastian in every single production, is such a talent that she stepped in to play the title character at the first Manchester press night, pulling off the role even though her slim figure was drowning in the plus-sized costume!

Original cast member Miracle Chance returns to the role of Ariel, after the show opted for star casting last time. Whilst the part requires her to embarrass and demean herself (which she does wonderfully), she also gets to show off her vocals (it take a really good singer to successfully do good bad singing, but Chance also gets the chance to show off her vocal prowess).

Greek God Blair Roberton is striking as the male lead, and Ursula’s love interest, King Triton, successfully developing from a bright young thing into his tyrannical father. James Spence (Prince Eric) had big boots to fill, with Jamie Mawson finally swimming away from the show. It’s hard to believe that this is his professional debut; he demands attention every single time he is onstage.

The show demands a lot from the multi-rolling ensemble, Freya McMahon and Fionan O’Carroll, who barely get chance to breathe underwater. But the best multi-rolling comes from Dart, who masterfully plays both Sebastian and the French chef trying to cook him in the same scene!

The set has once again been redesigned, this time by Jasmine Swan, who has also designed the costumes and co-designed the puppets, alongside puppet maker Mikayla Teodoro. Whilst the original production was very low budget (there was a charm to the cheapness) and the previous production was much more splashy (it was great seeing what the creatives could do with a bigger budget and set), the latest production is a happy medium that is cheaper to make and tour. The puppet design deserves great praise; it is impressive what they made without a huge budget. The puppets are brilliantly brought to life by puppet and movement director Laura Cubitt.

Tim Gilvin’s poppy, preppy score skillfully references songs from The Little Mermaid but also feels like its own comprehensive soundtrack, not merely a parody or pastiche. It offers choreographer Melody Sinclair-Marsh’s much to play around with, and she clearly had fun doing it, crafting choreo that is sharp, fresh and groovy.

Adam King’s whimsical lighting design transports the audience under the sea and into a world of fantasy and magic.

Unfortunate is unfortunately a bit long, but whilst it could be more concise, it never loses momentum, and it keeps you laughing throughout. There are a few pacing problems, with too much time spent on some scenes, and others feeling a bit rushed, particularly in the second act, as if the show is just trying to get through it all. But it’s a real rollercoaster that has the entertained, embarrassed audience gasping for air.

Unfortunate: The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch runs at Lowry (Quays Theatre) until January 11 and The Other Palace from February 5 to April 6.

Photo: Mark Senior