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Gilroy
July 15, 2025

Mustangs cruise through first round

Gilroy's Ashley Serrano was a little surprised to find out that

‘Little Mermaid Jr.’ Live

There’s nothing quite like a stage full of kids dressed as starfish, sea anemones and seagulls singing and dancing their little hearts out to lift one’s spirits these days. And the cast and crew of South Valley Civic Theatre do a charming job of it in their current children’s musical production of The Little Mermaid Jr. in Morgan Hill through Oct. 22.The story, loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen’s Danish fairy tale and adapted into a Disney movie and then a musical, involves a young mermaid, Ariel (Emily Pember) who falls in love with a human prince (Gannon Janisch) and is tricked into giving up her lovely singing voice to an evil sea witch (Jenna Hernandez) in exchange for legs so she can walk on land. She is surrounded by a cast of hilarious characters including the woebegone crab Sebastian (Tegan Leong) charged by Ariel’s father (Paul Maack) with keeping her safe.As the little mermaid of the title, Pember does fine work singing while managing the tricky aspects of swimming gracefully through the air (with flight direction by Jason Chamberlain). Unfortunately, her voice is sometimes overwhelmed by the recorded soundtrack on “Part of Your World.”As Ursula, the sea witch—in a wonderful costume of purple velvet and satin with sequined octopus’s tentacles—Hernandez has no such problems. She’s got a big voice and knows how to use it to best effect on “Poor Unfortunate Souls.”Stealing the show every which way is the spark plug Tegan Leong as the crab Sebastian, who knocks everyone out with a fish ensemble in “Under the Sea” and really tears things up in the sassy calypso “Kiss the Girl,” well supported by an undersea cast of seemingly thousands.Among the numerous other characters, well directed by Colleen Blanchard, Catherine Drayton stands out as the lead seagull, Scuttle (in a terrific costume, designed by Alice Gracey). Set designers Blanchard, Larry Tom and Jason Leong have created a wondrous undersea world, all wavering watercolors studded with bubbles and seaweed.The Little Mermaid Jr. Music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Glenn Slater, book by Doug Wright. Directed by Colleen Blanchard at South Valley Civic Theatre, Morgan Hill. Final performance is Oct. 22. For tickets call (408) 842-SHOW or visit www.svct.org. 

Collom Caps Career

Brian 'B.J.' Collom knows how to cap a career. The Sonoma State

School bond backed by $40,000

GILROY

Local Scene: Gilroy club offering $75k in grants

Gilroyan enrolls at Biola Madison Satalino, of Gilroy, recently enrolled at Biola University. Satalino is seeking an undergraduate degree in business administration, says a press release from the university.  Fall arts and crafts fair St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church’s autumn arts and crafts fair will take place 10am-5pm...

Mustangs meet the challenge

A lackluster finish to the first half of Tuesday night's game

Making exercise a part of life

Those looking for success stories of weight loss can find

New apartments provide permanent housing for chronically homeless

On Thursday afternoon, those attending the grand opening ceremony of the $8 million, 26-studio Gilroy Sobrato Apartments had the chance to visit the property and take a peek at the brand new building that boasts energy efficient and environmentally friendly features.

Accidents mar weekend

By Lori Stuenkel

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