Triton!

My son will play the role of King Triton in this weekend's local production of "The Little Mermaid Jr." He was asked to return to the stage under the direction of a former teacher, who needed a taller, more mature student to act in the role of the mermaid king. N has a deep, commanding voice. Apparently, some of the smaller children, playing in the roles of Ariel's younger sisters and small fish, stood up quite straight when they first heard him bark out orders. Yesterday was preview day, when the group performed for a revolving audience of classes from various grades in the school district. When his character appeared before the elementary school children several boys yelled, "It's Triton!!!!!" with so much zeal that the crew had to wait to cue the next round of spotlights. I hope that N remembers this chapter of his life and the admiration of his audience for a long time. I hope that he can lean on it during the "lower" times of life. He is planning to enlist in the Marines and I imagine there will be long hours on duty, marching, or on guard, when he might think back to his "merman days." As for me, I've resisted the urge to watch previews or sneak into dress rehearsals. I'm waiting for the curtain to be pulled back tonight so that I can yell (to myself of course), "It's Triton!" In memory of Kenneth Mars, the original voice actor for Disney's "The Little Mermaid."