Water Creatures

May I begin with "Part of Your World," sung by Ariel from "The Little Mermaid"?

Because of Ariel (and Dyesebel) I pretended to swim and lay on the sand at the beach like a mermaid. I did not realize that this was a song about coming out until my college professor pointed it out to me. I listened to Howard Ashman's lyrics with new ears. My professor was right. 

The characters in the works below have a desire to be part of another world. The water creatures in "Rusalka" and "The Lure" want to be on land. In "The Shape of Water" and "SpongeBob Squarepants: The Broadway Musical," the land creatures want to be in the water world.
Hans Christian Andersen's "The Little Mermaid" endures in "Rusalka" and "The Lure." They are not cruelty-free. "The Lure" has savage mermaids that eat human hearts. The otherness of the water creatures create ideal vehicles for themes of intolerance. "The Shape of Water" and "SpongeBob Squarepants: The Broadway Musical" feature struggles against intolerance. There's a price to pay when joining another world. Typically one loses her voice - literally and figuratively. In all four works, music bridges the separate worlds. 

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Rusalka

(1901, composed by Antonin Dvorak, libretto by Jaroslav Kvapil)(2016-2017 Season, The Met: Live in HD, dir. Mary Zimmerman)

Nymph walks on land for
Lover, then betrayed. Water,
 Moon music pervade.

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The Shape of Water

(2017, dir. Guillermo del Toro)

Del Toro makes an

Adult fairy tale, monster

Musical movie.

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The Lure

(2015, dir. Agnieszka Smoczynska)

Killer mermaids sing

And dance in Polish. Surf and

Turf cannot unite.

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SpongeBob Squarepants: The Broadway Musical

(seen 2/2018, Palace Theatre, Music & Lyrics by Various, Book by Kyle Jarrow, dir. Tina Landau)

Bikini Bottom

On Broadway. Pastiche songs preach

Optimistic views.