Published Apr 28, 2025 • Last updated 22 minutes ago • 6 minute readDanny Everson, the executive director of Mermaid Theatre in Windsor, says the second season of Animalingo, a popular children’s show launched during the pandemic on Mermaid TV, will be out this fall and will focus on four new characters. Mermaid Theatre’s new production, Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales, will also be released this fall. Photo by Carole Morris-UnderhillFeaturing rich storytelling and charming puppetry, Mermaid Theatre has been delighting audiences worldwide for more than 50 years.Some of its most beloved stage productions – The Very Hungry Caterpillar, The Rainbow Fish, and Good Night Moon and The Runaway Bunny – have reached more than 6.5 million people over the last five decades.The theatre is continually evolving, incorporating new techniques and expanding how to reach audiences. During the pandemic, for example, it ventured into the digital realm, launching Mermaid TV online, which features a host of original programming.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentMermaid Theatre’s executive director Danny Everson said the company is hoping to capture even more children’s imaginations with a new production that’s in the works.Read More Windsor’s Mermaid Theatre receives $1.2 million for upgrades ‘It’s worth saving’: Province invests $1.16 million into renovations at Mermaid Theatre in Windsor, N.S. ‘Worth preserving’: Fundraiser launched to help save historic Windsor, N.S., theatre “Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales is Mermaid’s new flagship production that’s in development right now,” Everson said.While most of Mermaid’s touring productions are based off beloved children’s books, this project is different. It’s completely original.The production focuses on three classic fairy tales: The Three Little Pigs, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, and the Three Billy Goats Gruff.Article content“It’s a reinvented story really focused on that idea of the monster under the bed that doesn’t exist; that these villains that we all believe were always there, the wolf and Goldilocks, that they actually were never present and it was all made up,” Everson said. Work is progressing on Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales – Mermaid Theatre’s original production. Photo by Contributed“So I think it’s really unique that Mermaid takes a different direction and approach to developing a new piece of work that isn’t solely relying exclusively on a book, that we are actually playwriting, that we are understanding what it means to play.”Everson said theatre officials examined what’s important to children when they play and looked to “turn simple things that kids see and also play with every day into the show.”They decided to incorporate shapes, like triangles, squares and rectangles, into the set design and story.Article content“So the kids actually can see building blocks that are much larger being put together to actually create the set, which is something that I know educators are really excited about, as well as presenters,” he said.Although still in the works, Everson said the new show will not only be entertaining but educational – something Mermaid strives to always provide.“It’s not just a show. It’s a lot of time spent into developing a piece of work that can meet not only Mermaid’s internal criteria – it has to be fun, it has to be exciting, it has to be engaging, it has to promote local artists and technicians and creators – but also it needs to help support curriculum,” he said.“In many ways, arts and education are hand in hand.”Full circleArticle contentCanadian poet and playwright George Elliott Clarke, who hails from West Hants, will narrate the new show.Artist Kate Church was approached to design the characters for the production.“Her designs are pieces of art. They’re gorgeous items that you have never seen before,” Everson said.“All the characters have visual personalities that you know who these characters are before they even speak or do anything.” Artist Kate Church worked at Mermaid Theatre in the late 1980s and early 1990s. She has come full circle and is lending her talent to Mermaid’s latest production, Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales. Photo by ContributedChurch, who lives in Martins Point, Lunenburg County, with her husband Bradley Wiseman, said she was delighted to return to Mermaid Theatre to help out on the new show.“Well, Jim (Morrow – Mermaid’s artistic director, puppeteer and designer) is a friend and someone I worked with at Mermaid a long time ago when we were young – not that we’re not young, but we’re not as young as we were,” Church said with a laugh.Article contentShe worked at Mermaid Theatre in the late 1980s and early 1990s before embarking on a career that saw her figurine artwork travel the world.Designing the characters for Mermaid’s new project came naturally.She designed 11 characters, which are now being transformed into puppets. World-renowned figurine artist Kate Church designed 11 characters that will be part of Mermaid Theatre’s new original production entitled Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales. Photo by ContributedChurch, who once designed products for Cirque de Soliel, said it was refreshing to have free rein when creating the characters for Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales.“Danny and Jim both let me play; liked what I was doing,” Church said. “It was one of those times where everything works, and that’s rare. And a lot of that has to do with those guys, the way they are… as a theatre and as people.”She said being able to participate in Mermaid’s latest endeavour was a “full circle” moment and she’s looking forward to dropping by the Windsor-based studio to see her characters come to life on stage.Article content“My hope is that it’s a terrific success. It’s a beautiful story, what I know of it,” Church said, noting she hasn’t read the script but has heard a summary.“I’m looking forward to peeking in to see the puppets being made. For me as an artist, that’s very exciting and very beautiful,” she said.“I look forward to seeing these little characters dancing in front of children’s eyes. I think there’s nothing more magical that you can do in life.”Digital evolutionEverson said Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales will incorporate digital technology – something Mermaid really embraced during the pandemic.“During the COVID years, Mermaid TV was very, very helpful in terms of expanding our operations on a digital level, but also reaching youth that would never see this type of work before,” Everson said, noting a librarian in Serbia even subscribed to the service to enrich children’s lives.Article contentMermaid TV launched Animalingo in 2022, an educational series that introduces viewers to a variety of languages. The first season, featuring 30 episodes, showcased Mi’kmaq, Acadian French, and Gaelic – representing languages found in the Maritimes. Each episode is 18-28 minutes long. Animators are working on the second season of Animalingo, a popular educational series airing online on Mermaid TV. Photo by ContributedEverson said staff are putting the finishing touches on the second season, which will be released this fall. This season will focus on the romance languages – French, Spanish and Italian.“Oddly enough, Mermaid had relationships with cultural guides who were born in those countries and then became citizens of Canada,” Everson said, noting each episode features a cultural guide interacting with a puppet as they learn new words and phrases.Article content“This is a game-changer,” Everson said of the how Animalingo is helping viewers understand new languages.“This is a really interesting approach to having children be curious and excited about other languages and cultures around the world.”He said even staff are picking up terminology from the shows.Since Mermaid Theatre has embraced 2D and 3D animation for their online offerings, staff are looking for ways to incorporate those skills into stage shows.“It’s an elevated step for Mermaid to somehow understand the technology and embrace it,” Everson said.“We’ve always been an analog company, so we’ve worked with materials and without the mechanisms of anything really digital other than lights and sound. But this is a really unique opportunity to introduce what we do in Mermaid TV with our theatrical touring initiatives.”Article contentMermaid designers are currently working with projection mapping to incorporate 3D images and animation onto the stage. Everson said an example would be for the Three Little Pigs’ homes. He said a 3D texture, like straw or wood, will be projected onto a white square block on the stage.“So it has a really unique visual impact for the audience and for children to see,” he said.Everson said Mermaid continues to play with new ideas, something they encourage children to do, and that’s helping it reach new audiences and continue to grow.“There’s a magic here that we all feel and that keeps pulling us to what we do.”Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales will tour Canada and the United States, beginning in October, for nine months.Article content The workshop of artist Kate Church is filled with creative energy. Pictured is one of the characters she’s developed for Mermaid Theatre’s Billy Goats Gruff and Other Tales – a production that will begin touring in the fall.Did you know?Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia is headquartered in downtown Windsor.The building features more than 50,000 square feet of creative enterprises, including a 400-seat performance venue, several offices, rehearsal spaces and training facilities to support hands-on puppetry, professional workshop spaces, as well as a music school, a bakery, and an upscale café.A major capital project is underway to renovate Mermaid’s 400-seat theatre. This will improve infrastructure, safety, and digital capabilities.Key upgrades include installing an HVAC system and other energy-efficient infrastructure; improving accessibility, which includes auditorium seating, washrooms, entrances; modernizing technical systems for lighting, sound, and stage; as well as enhancing the audience’s comfort through improved seating, concessions, and signage.Mermaid Theatre is currently hosting a sponsor a seat campaign. People can sponsor a seat for $300 or two seats for $500. Each seat will feature a custom brass plaque engraved with the name of the sponsor.Article content
Mermaid Theatre launching new stage production this fall
