Unfortunate: The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch - Interview

How do you go about bringing to stage The Little Mermaid but from Ursula's perspective? It's something theatre company Fat Rascal has managed to do and has enjoyed great success in doing so with their hit parody musical Unfortunate.

Unfortunate: The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch has splash landed at the Edinburgh Fringe with the show running daily at Udderbelly in George Square at 5.55pm. Tickets are available from https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/unfortunate-the-untold-story-of-ursula-the-sea-witch. For the run, I spoke with Allie Dart who plays Sebastian in the show.

Our chat began with Allie telling me a little bit more about the show "Unfortunate is a fun, filthy and fabulous re-telling of the little mermaid but from Ursula’s side of the story. Just like Wicked, we go back to the beginning and find out how she became the icon she is today. It’s got amazing original music as well as some cracking parody songs which will make you nostalgic for Disney’s versions but you’ll never be able to listen to ‘Part of Your World’ in the same way again. We’re a cast of 6 so expect lots of puppets, wigs and fast costume changes too!!"

For Allie working with Fat Rascal has clearly been a joy for Allie, she explained to me "I’ve been part of Fat Rascal theatre from the beginning all the way back in 2016. Robyn Grant (artistic director) and I went to drama school together and from then on Robyn has been churning out hilarious feminist musicals (with her co-writer Daniel Foxx). So far, we’ve created 6 together so whenever she comes to me with a project I know I’m going to love it and have to help her bring it to life. Fat Rascal always puts women at the forefront of their stories and always makes people laugh out loud, two things I’m very passionate about."

 

One thing you shouldn't expect is that Disney version of the story but for Allie creating her own take on Sebastian and other characters has been really fun "I love Ursula and knew that people have always wanted to know more about her so of course this was going to be such a fun project to be a part of. I am one of the multi-rolers in the cast so I play Sebastian the crab but also about 7 other parts too. Preparing for a multi-role track is really fun as you have to make sure every character is completely developed and completely different. So discovering how they all walk and talk is something I loved doing, playing with my accents and physicality to show all their different personalities."

Returning to The Fringe once more for Allie is evidently something that just feels right, she explained "It’s my happy place. I’m so glad to be back and as soon as I got here it felt like the home away from home that it always has been. This year feels extra special as people have missed it so much, we’ve all been through a tough couple of years and needed to come together and celebrate this fantastic festival of creativity, perhaps with a drink or two in hand."

For Unfortunate Allie told me what she hoped an audience would take away from seeing the show "I want their cheeks to hurt from smiling. I want them to feel a little more confident in their own skin, and know that we’re all unique and that’s what makes us beautiful. I would love them to be humming a tune or two and perhaps thinking ‘wow how is there only 6 of them on stage’."

What does theatre mean to Allie? She explained to me her perspective "Theatre is a collective group of people knowing they’ve all shared the same live experience but also knowing that it could be completely different another night. I love when it unites us but I also love when it divides us and makes people discuss things they wouldn’t have before. Theatre is what I hope to be doing for a very long time."

Our chat wrapped with Allie explaining why YOU the reader should check out the show "if you need a good laugh. If you love Disney, or if you hate Disney, then you will love this show. It really is so much fun and a great night out so please do come and join us under the sea!!"

Unfortunate: The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch plays Udderbelly in George Square at 5.55pm until August 29th. Tickets are available from https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/unfortunate-the-untold-story-of-ursula-the-sea-witch.