Just as the Palace Theatre prepared to kick off its production of the musical based on the classic Disney animated movie, the first teaser trailer dropped for Disney’s 2023 live-action film version of the story.
“We had no idea that was going to come out so close to opening, but the cast has been so excited about it,” said Sebastian Goldberg, assistant artistic director and choreographer of the production. “Everyone loves to try that riff that she [Halle Bailey, the actress playing Ariel] sings.”
The Palace’s The Little Mermaid runs at the Manchester theater through Oct. 2, with shows on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays as well as on Thursday, Sept. 29.
Without the benefit of animation or CGI, the Palace’s production team had to get creative, tasked with designing a set that looks and feels as though it is deep in the ocean. In addition to strategic lighting, the set uses some unexpected materials.
“There’s this stuff, it’s called The Great Stuff, it’s normally used for insulation or as a gap filler in construction projects, but we’ve been using it a lot to design the set. When we let it dry and paint over it, it looks a lot like coral,” Goldberg said.
The set, though, is only half the battle in giving the show the impression of being “under the sea.”
“Every show has its own unique challenges. For our actors, it takes a lot of practice to give the impression of being underwater,” Goldberg said. “One thing they do is move their arms as though they’re treading water, so while they’re doing a scene, they also have to be conscious of that.”
Even without the unique challenges of designing a show that takes place underwater, The Little Mermaid is still somewhat out of the ordinary for the Palace, whose later mainstage productions this season include more traditional “adult” shows like Grease and A Christmas Carol.
“During our regular season, we don’t usually do these types of shows, but The Little Mermaid is such a big show and such a big part of so many people’s lives and childhoods,” Goldberg said.
To Goldberg, it’s a production that can be enjoyed by all ages.
“Ariel is a special character. She’s fiercely independent, she follows her heart, sometimes to a fault, but she has that endearing naivete that makes her so loveable,” he said. “That’s something the audience will be able to feel, and want to be on this journey with her while they watch the show.”
As they prepared for opening night on Sept. 16, Goldberg was hoping audiences will get something special out of seeing The Little Mermaid live.
“I hope that any time someone leaves the Palace that they remember there’s nothing quite like live theater. We’re all going through so much these days and theater is such an escape, and so I’m excited for people to let themselves get lost in the story, and to leave feeling a little lighter, maybe wanting to sing and dance through the street,” he said.
The Little Mermaid Where: Palace Theatre, 80 Hanover St., Manchester; 668-5588 When: Now through Sunday, Oct. 2. Show times are Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 2 and 7:30 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m., plus Thursday, Sept. 29, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets: $25 to $45 at palacetheatre.org
After getting a quick set of stretches in, friends Jessee Tardif and Meghan Richard write their names in separate squares of the free play boxes.
The two women are among the youngest of the pickleball players who gathered at Fields Grove in Nashua, but that fact doesn’t faze them in the slightest.
“I learned how to play a few years ago from a next-door neighbor, but I just started playing more regularly,” Richard said. “This is my third time back this week.”
This group meets every day at 9 a.m. and plays until noon. Instead of arriving with a doubles partner, players arrive with friends but play with whomever is present, often choosing different courts. This system of setting up games is called open play.
Pickleball, a sport invented less than a century ago, has taken southern New Hampshire by storm, with courts popping up all over the state’s public parks, tennis clubs and town recreation centers. It’s played on a court made from the same material as a tennis court — the players all have paddles that are reminiscent of ping-pong paddles, but much larger, while the ball itself is a plastic wiffle ball that is much slower than a traditional tennis ball.
While the game can be played in singles, it’s most often played in doubles. Each half of the court has three sections, a left and right zone and the no-volley zone, colloquially called the kitchen.
Pickleball versus tennis: the key differences While pickleball was partially based on tennis, the rules differ in a few ways, according to the USA Pickleball Association. A full list of rules can be found at usapickleball.org. • Points are scored only by the team serving • The way a game is won is the team gets at least 11 points total, but must win by a difference of two points • There is a “no-volley zone” called the kitchen, where players cannot stand when hitting the ball • One server serves until they make a mistake that results in the stop of play, called a fault • The second member of the team will serve until their team causes a fault • All serves must be underhand • There is a two-bounce rule, meaning the serve must result in a bounce to the receiver and the receiver must bounce the ball back to the serving team before points can be scored
Bob Hanek, one of the original members of the Nashua Pickleball Club, said that the game is meant to be social in nature. To demonstrate his point, he gestures to players hanging around the picnic benches next to the courts. Players mingle and chat, sipping water and eating light snacks, while watching friends they’ve made from the sport play.
“That makes it very, very positive because not only are you getting out, you’re doing some exercise, you’re developing a skill, but there’s people all around you to talk to,” Hanek said.
Players who are more serious about the sport tend to gravitate toward certain parks, Hanek said. He added that, in his opinion, the game was invented to be a way for people to have fun and get to make new friends.
West Coast origins
Pickleball was originally created in 1965 by three fathers from Washington state who were looking for a summer activity to entertain their active kids, according to information online from the USA Pickleball Association, the national governing body of the sport. The game has since taken off, gaining professional leagues across America — in March of this year, it was even declared the official state sport of Washington by Gov. Jay Inslee.
The sport had been played in every U.S. state by 1990, but its popularity didn’t start spiking until the mid-2010s, Hanek said. While he wasn’t a founding member, he joined the Nashua Pickleball Club before it even had a regular court to play at.
Larry Goodwin gets his serve swinging for a round of pickleball. Photo by Katelyn Sahagian.
The public club in Nashua was started in 2013 by Doug Price and about 30 of his close friends. Price approached the city’s Parks and Recreation department, asking if they could use beat up and unused tennis courts for pickleball. Price and his friends fixed, cleaned and painted the old tennis courts, transforming them into pickleball courts.
“There’s an old park down in Fields Grove with a tennis court that nobody ever uses,” Price remembers his contact at the Parks and Recreation department saying. “Over the course of two or three years, [he] helped us get to where we are today.”
Price, a snowbird who spends half the year in Sarasota, Florida, started the group to continue playing his favorite sport in the summer months. Nearly a decade later, the group is now at more than 450 members.
Price said he never imagined that so many people would want to join and pick up a game. He has been so influential to the sport in Nashua that the city’s Parks and Recreation department named the courts at Field Grove after him.
“And so unbeknownst to me, they present me with that,” Price said as he pointed to the sign that hangs on the court’s chain link fencing. “This is our first home and everybody loves it here.”
Public parks with pickleball courts • Barnard Park, South Mast Street, Goffstown • Beaver Meadow Park, 42 Sewalls Falls Road, Concord • Bedford Parks and Recreation, Nashua Road, Bedford • Fields Grove, Fields Street, Nashua • Foss Field, 88 Lehner St., Wolfeboro • Hudson Community Center, 12 Lions Ave., Hudson • Hudson Outdoor Pickleball Courts, 8 Melendy Road, Hudson • Laconia Community Center (indoor venue), 306 Union Ave., Laconia • Prout Park, 284 Young St., Manchester • South Mill Pond Playground, Junkins Avenue, Portsmouth • Stevens Park, 68 Bunker Hill Ave., Stratham
How pickleball got so popular
Denise Cascio Bolduc had first heard of pickleball at a professional women’s tennis event in 2019. She said that she and some of her friends tried the game and, from then on, she became hooked.
“It’s one of those activities that doesn’t feel like you’re getting exercise,” Bolduc said. “This just feels like fun. The fact that you’re getting exercise and burning calories is a huge bonus.”
She was surprised that there weren’t many places to play in the Manchester area, so she decided to change that. This led her to helping set up Rock On Pickleball. Bolduc became the founding president of the club, which now practices at Rock Rimmon Park in Manchester.
While she has since parted ways with the group, Bolduc still plays the sport. She just won two gold medals in Wolfeboro for the Pickleball All Stars tournament earlier this month.
Today, she continues to run a much more informal group at Prout Park in Manchester, and is the contact person for the courts at the park.
Bolduc isn’t the only tennis player to switch over to pickleball. Hanek said that many pickleball players have played other racquet sports in the past, and experience with tennis and badminton makes pickleball easier to pick up.
Hanek said he likes pickleball because the style of play isn’t as aggressive as tennis. He said that it’s a game of placement, not a game that requires players to plow through their opponent. In many ways, he said, the rules require some collaboration between the opposite sides. Things like the two-bounce rule and being responsible for calling one’s own fouls keep players responsible.
“I think that’s the magic [of] this,” Hanek said. “It’s social enough and it’s collaborative enough so that you don’t really feel bad being punished for your mistakes.”
Part of what makes pickleball special to Hanek is the camaraderie that forms. He said there is a focus on socialization that is lacking in other sports. Pickleball, especially open-play, means that there’s a limited number of courts, and an unlimited number of payers.
It’s a simple game to play, Hanek said — but to him, that isn’t why it’s so popular.
“It’s a multigenerational game,” he said. “Everyone of different abilities can play.”
Hanek said that he has shared the court with a three-generation family of players: a grandfather, son and 12-year-old grandson.
Hannah Turtle contributed to this cover story.
Where to play organized pickleball
There are groups and free-play options across southern New Hampshire. Visit places2play.org to find additional locations.
Bow Brook Club Where: 144 Warren St., Concord Membership: Full membership costs range from $650 to $720 annually, and associate membership costs range from $350 to $400 annually (members must be 21 years of age or older) Visit: bowbrook.club
Executive Health & Sports Center Where: 1 Highlander Way, Manchester When: Half of the basketball court is available for open pickleball play on Sundays, from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m., and on Mondays, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Call 668-4753 to book court time outside of open pickleball hours. Visit: ehsc.com/pickleball
Exeter Recreation Park Pickleball Pickup Program Where: 4 Hampton Road, Exeter (games take place on the tennis courts) When: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, from 7 to 10 a.m., and Wednesdays, from 6 p.m. to dusk Cost: $5 per person per session Visit: exeternh.gov/recreation/adult-18-pickleball-pick
Health Club of Concord Where: 10 Garvins Falls Road, Concord Hours: Monday through Friday, 5 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visit: healthclubofconcord.com
New England Pickleball Club Where: 6 Airfield Drive, Rye Hours: Weekdays, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and weekends, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cost: $12 per hour Visit: nepclub.com
Rock Rimmon Park Pickleball Courts Where: Rock Rimmon Park, 264 Mason St., Manchester When: The Rock On Pickleball Club plays every day at 8 a.m. Contact: Nicole Mendola, 714-8394
YMCA of Downtown Manchester Where: 30 Mechanic St., Manchester When: Monday through Friday, 8:30 to 10:30 a.m., and Saturday 8 to 10 a.m.; also offered from 1 to 3 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and from 6 to 8 p.m. on Tuesdays. Visit: graniteymca.org
Featured photo: Apple Hill Farm in Concord. Courtesy photo.
Join 603 Forward and the Forward Foundation for the Forward Fest today at the Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St., Manchester) at 5:30 p.m. The event will celebrate young leaders of New Hampshire. The event will have live music, arts, community building and food. Ticket prices for adults start at $50. For more information about this event, visit 603forward.org.
Friday, Sept. 23
Mel’s Funway Park (454 Charles Bancroft Hwy, Litchfield) has undergone its annual transformation into Spooky World as of today at 7 p.m. The horror-themed amusement park will have a haunted hayride, a maze filled with a new breed of monster, a 3D nightmare attraction called Dream Scape, and a chance to escape Asylum 47. Tickets start at $54 and can be purchased at nightmarenewengland.com.
Saturday, Sept. 24
The Beaver Brook Association (117 Ridge Road, Hollis) is hosting its annual Fall Festival and Art Show today from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The event features artwork by regional artists, children’s art, live music, animal and birds of prey presentations, guided hikes and herbal and flower products and refreshments for sale. Amy Conley will offer children’s songs and a puppet show (at 11 a.m. on Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday), and the Flying Gravity Circus, a children’s circus troupe, will perform at 4 p.m. on Saturday. The event is free to attend and more information can be found at beaverbrook.org.
Saturday, Sept. 24
Today is the opening reception for the The New Hampshire Potters Guild’s biennial exhibition, “Storied in Clay,” at the exhibition gallery at the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen headquarters (49 S. Main St., Concord). The exhibition will open on Sept. 26 and run through Oct. 27. The reception is free and takes place during the two-day Capital Arts Fest (today from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) happening on Main Street in downtown Concord. Visit nhpottersguild.org for more information on the exhibit and nhcrafts.org for more on the fest.
Saturday, Sept. 24
Millyard Brewery (25 E. Otterson St., Nashua) is hosting an Oktoberfest today from 1 to 8 p.m. and tomorrow, Sunday, Sept. 25, from 1 to 6 p.m. The festival will have live music, games, traditional German food, a beer stein holding contest and more. Visit millyardbrewery.com for more information.
Sunday, Sept. 25
The annual Merci train ceremony is today at 1 p.m. at the boxcar’s permanent location, on Reed Street in Manchester. The ceremony commemorates the soldiers from New Hampshire who fought and died in France during World War II, liberating the French people. The ceremony is free to attend, and more information about it is available at facnh.com.
Save the date! Saturday, Oct. 22 Adam Sandler is coming to the SNHU Arena (555 Elm St., Manchester) on Saturday, Oct. 22. Sandler will be performing a new stand-up comedy routine. Doors to the event will open at 6:30 p.m., and the show will start at 7:30 p.m. Tickets start at $39.50 and can be bought at snhuarena.com.
Featured photo. The Flying Gravity Circus. Courtesy photo.
Hope for New Hampshire Recovery, a Manchester-based nonprofit that connects people in recovery with people struggling with addiction, presents its Recovery Festival on Saturday, Sept. 24, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Veterans Park in downtown Manchester. According to a press release, the event will feature more than 40 representatives from local recovery residences, treatment and recovery centers, health agencies and other pathways to recovery; as well as music, free candy, free home Covid tests courtesy of the Manchester Health Department and free Naloxone courtesy of Manchester Doorway. Visit recoverynh.org/recoveryfestival.
QOL score: +1
Comment:The Hope Recovery Center, on Wilson Street in Manchester, hosts more than 40 recovery meetings a week and presents musical talent shows and more than 600 member-made paintings on the walls “to help demonstrate that recovery is more than just going to meetings — it’s a brand new and better life,” the press release stated.
Vaxxed up
A recent WalletHub study ranked New Hampshire at No. 3 out of the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia for the Most Vaccinated States. The study looked at various factors, such as the influenza vaccination rate of youth; the share of teenagers with up-to-date HPV vaccinations; the share of senior adults who have received a Zoster vaccination and more. New Hampshire ranked especially high for flu vaccination coverage rate among adults (No. 3) and share of adults with tetanus vaccination (No. 3).
QOL score: +1
Comment: New England swept the top six, with Massachusetts at No. 1, followed by Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Maine, and Connecticut at No. 6.
Return of the flu
New Hampshire health officials are warning that the upcoming flu season could be the worst in several years, NHPR reported. Influenza cases dropped significantly in the 2020-2021 season as a byproduct of Covid mitigation measures. The number of cases increased in the 2021-2022 season, but were still significantly lower than a typical season pre-Covid. This fall and winter, however, influenza cases are expected to fully rebound. The CDC recommends that people get a flu shot by the end of October to reduce their risk of becoming infected with or becoming seriously ill from the flu, which typically peaks around February.
QOL score: -1
Comment:Covid booster vaccinations updated to protect against the omicron variant recently became available in New Hampshire, and it’s safe to get the Covid booster and the flu vaccine at the same time, according to the CDC.
Overdoses on the rise
The total number of suspected opioid overdoses so far this year in New Hampshire’s two largest cities, Manchester and Nashua, is 624, which is 19 percent higher than the total was for 2021 at this time of year, the Union Leader reported. The cities are currently averaging between 80 and 90 drug overdoses a month, putting Nashua on track to have the highest number of opioid overdose-suspected deaths in a one-year period since 2015, and Manchester on track to have the highest since 2017.
QOL score: -2
Comment:The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration recently warned the public of an emerging trend of fentanyl produced in the form of brightly colored pills, powders and blocks, made to look like candy to appeal to children and young people, the article said.
QOL score: 83
Net change: -1
QOL this week: 82
What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire? Let us know at [email protected].
A few thoughts on interesting sports stories in recent weeks.
Count me as enthusiastically on board with the new 12-team college football championship tournament to start as early as 2024.
I love that champs from the six top leagues automatically make it, there will be six at-large bids and the four highest-ranked teams get an opening week bye.
The Boston Globe headline reading, “Six fumbles, two interceptions, and just 29 rushing yards” told all you needed to know as BC lost its home opener to Rutgers. But how does a football team with eight turnovers only lose by one point, 22-21?
Suspending GeorgeSteinbrenner for life is what got FayVincent fired as Baseball Commissioner in 1990 because the remaining owners didn’t want an employee with that kind of power over them. Hence Milwaukee owner BudSelig replaced him. So give NBA commish AdamSilver props for having the stones to suspend Suns owner RobertSarver a year for the range of abuses investigators uncovered.
Props also to BradStevens for not panicking after DaniloGallinari went down with a torn ACL. Better off first giving SamHauser a shot as the bench three-point bomber to save their meager cap space/injury exemption for the better options available in February at the trade deadline or buy out market if he’s not the answer.
Who else saw the irony in DannyAinge getting back (with the usual boatload of top picks) CollinSexton in Utah’s trade of DonovanMitchell to Cleveland? The now 23-year-old 20-point scorer was the lottery pick sent to Cleveland to get KyrieIrving in 2017.
Amid the excitement of AaronJudge’s chase to pass BabeRuth and RogerMaris for the single-season AL home run record and, more importantly, most in Yankees history is the absolute lunacy of analytics’ impact on baseball, as when manager AaronBoone batted him lead-off on a team with 7, 8 and 9 hitters hovering around the Mendoza line (.200) and also getting few walks. My baseball analytics say this: With no one on base in the first at-bat for the team’s best RBI guy, and thanks to the stiffs in front of him getting on base twice every 10 at-bats during his next three, instead of the nearly five that would be on if batting clean-up, he’ll hit with roughly 300 fewer guys on base over 150 games. Case in point: When he hit numbers 56, 57, 58 and 59 last week, three were solo homers and the fourth had one guy on. I’d like to hear the stat geeks explain the benefit of that.
Here’s a stark illustration of what pitching is today vs. in the era when men were men, even when a guy is pitching great, as Arizona’s ZacGallen did when he recently tied back-in-the-day-ers OrelHershiser and DonDrysdale (plus Zack Greinke) for the all-time record of making six straight starts without allowing a run.
The difference is that Gallen never made it past the seventh inning in any of his starts while throwing 41.1 innings. For Drysdale it was six complete game shutouts, while Hershiser matched that and needed to go extra innings once to earn the all-time record at 59.
That’s two full games’ worth of innings more than Gallen. How can those feats be considered the same thing?
Hey, MattPatricia, what’s the over-under in Patriots games for when you’ll finally call a few screen passes to help reduce the pressure on MacJones?
The “I did not know that” fact of the week, courtesy of Concord sports aficionado JeffSmith via Facebook: While I saw the old man play a lot when he was hooping for Saint Anselm, I didn’t know Steelers tight end PatrickFreiermuth, who caught a TD vs. the Pats on Sunday, is the son of back in the day Hawks/Oyster River HS star JohnFreiermuth.
Best comic line I’ve heard from a broadcaster in a long time came from IanEagle during Sunday’s Patriots-Pittsburgh game. His partner CharlesDavis made a Seinfeld reference about NelsonAgholor taking the “marble rye” (Jerry stole one from an “old bag” in one episode) into the end zone after a leap over and snatch away from the defender. Eagle followed that during the replay by saying that “was real and spectacular,” which is what TeriHatcher said to end a show Jerry spent trying to find out if her, ah, impressive anatomy was real or enhanced. Yada, yada, yada.
Glad the aforementioned Eagle also cleared up why Pittsburgh is finally retiring the number of Steelers great FrancoHarris 40 years after he last played. Turns out it’s to coincide with the 50th anniversary of his “Immaculate Reception” that stuck a dagger much deeper into the heart of Raiders Nation than the tuck rule did in early 2002. Makes perfect sense since it is unchallenged as the NFL’s most shocking ending and one of its greatest games.
Incidentally, my introduction to Harris came when he played with LydellMitchell at Penn State in one of the greatest college backfields ever. In those days WPIX in New York used to air condensed one-hour versions of PSU games on Sunday mornings. I watched every week, but thanks to the quirky delivery of whoever the announcer was, it was almost two seasons before I realized he was not the hard-running Irish fullback named Frank O’Harris I thought he was, but instead the son of an Italian mom and English dad named Franco Harris.
I hope all the LIV golfers taking Saudi Arabia blood money saw the gut-wrenching 60 Minutes special on the bravery and brutal sacrifice of the FDNY on 9-11 and its aftermath that ran on the 21st anniversary, ’cause their being so tied to that attack is one of the things SA is trying to whitewash with their golf PR campaign.
New director of homeland security, emergency management
Meet Robert Buxton, who was nominated by Gov. Chris Sununu to be the director of the New Hampshire Department of Safety’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Buxton was sworn in to the position on Sept. 6.
What is your background in this type of work, and how did you come into this position?
I was a 30-year fire service employee. I retired out of the town of Hudson; I [served for] nine years as fire chief there. I graduated from UNH with a master’s degree in public administration. One of my core roles in Hudson was to be the emergency management director. This position provided that next step of opportunity for me in my career, and I thought it was a great opportunity to come in with a really motivated staff to put out good customer service to the communities in New Hampshire.
What do you and the Division do?
The Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management covers a lot of opportunities surrounding community preparedness, community outreach, emergency management, disaster planning and public assistance grants. The Homeland Security side co-manages the state’s Information Analysis Center. We provide a lot of support to the local communities surrounding Homeland Security information and emergency management. … I’m on Day 3 [of the job]. The day to day right now looks very busy in regards to getting my arms around the different divisions and having an understanding and creating a routine with staff and basically looking at the vision of the organization and setting that out. Right now we provide forward-facing customer service to 234 communities in the Granite State, and we look to continue that as we move forward.
What are some of the biggest issues the Division is working to address right now?
We’re still providing a lot of support to the local community surrounding Covid and the Covid monies and disaster relief funds. Secondarily to that, we’re also heavily engaged in the school safety process. We continue to work the different levels of emergency response surrounding Seabrook Station [Nuclear Power Plant] and those events are probably the top three or four that I can give you right now. Those are the top three things right now.
What is your role in responding to the pandemic? How is it different from the role of other state departments, such as the Department of Health?
This is a collaborative effort on the state level with DHHS, and right now, probably the biggest responsibility and collaborative piece that we’re working through is in regards to the recovery money, making sure that we’re supporting the communities and getting the relief money [to them] and managing those grant processes. Additionally, we continue to work on messaging, making sure those messages are put out in the state of New Hampshire and that they are clear.
How do you work with each New Hampshire community to ensure that it has the funds, training and preparedness to respond to an emergency quickly?
One of the strengths of this Division over the years … [has been] their hard work in collaborating with the local municipalities. They’ve created a very supportive environment for the emergency management directors across the state in making sure that they’re getting the resources that they need to be able to prepare and provide the service to their constituencies when an emergency does arise. There’s a very strong foundation that has been put in place, and we look to continue to grow that as I phase into my position.
What do you find rewarding about this line of work?
This line of work is one of the most rewarding things, I think, that you can look at. You have a direct impact to all 234 communities across the state of New Hampshire, and it’s a great opportunity [for them] to see us continue to prepare, so we can make sure that folks understand what they need to do if we’re getting close to a potential disaster and make sure they have the tools. It’s that day-in-and-day-out impact that we push out to the local communities that’s the most rewarding.
What can individuals and families do to prepare for and stay safe during an emergency?
There are four key steps that I would like them to look at: stay informed, have a plan, make a kit — a kit for no power, a kit for cold weather, those sorts of things — and get involved. They can sign up for the New Hampshire alerts to stay informed on what potentially could be happening in their area.
