Nash Daniels (’29) sparkled in Cherokee’s 2025 fall production of “The Little Mermaid” as Sebastian.
Sebastian is King Triton’s loyal advisor, who watches over Ariel as one of his duties. He is a carefree crab, but most of the time, he is grumpy and worried due to Ariel’s mischief. Two of the most popular songs this character sings are “Under the Sea” and “Kiss the Girl.”
Daniels has been doing theater for three years. His first show was in 2022, and it was “Newsies.” Immediately, he knew that theater was something he’d want to continue doing. Some of his other roles were Charlie in “Willy Wonka,” James in “James and the Giant Peach,” Jojo in “Suessical,” Mal Beineke in “The Addams Family,” and Winthrop in “The Music Man.”
His favorite character in “The Little Mermaid,” other than his own, is Ursula. He likes her songs, of course, but also her reasoning for all she does.
“She’s like, trying to get revenge on her brother because of what he took from her,” he said. “I just think that is very powerful and her motive for the story is like, really strong.”
Daniels was most excited for people to see “Under the Sea” and “If Only (Quartet).” He cited the lights as being one of the elements of “Under the Sea” that made it so worthy of the anticipation. He said that the cast worked really hard on “If Only (Quartet),” and that it was a song about the motives of some of the show’s main characters. His favorite song to sing in the show is “Under the Sea,” not only because of what a fun and magical number it is, but also because of how it’s challenged him as an actor.
“This is probably one of the most challenging songs because like, there’s nowhere to breathe in the song and I’m dancing, too,” he said. He also said that his stamina for this song and the accent he used for the entire show were areas in which he needed to improve. It’s safe to say he did!
In Daniels’ opinion, the worst part of performing is when the show is over. For him, the best is the opposite: opening night.
“It’s the first time the audience sees it, and everyone’s so excited,” he said. “We’re all doing our best, and we’re all working together as a cast to put on the show!”
Daniels’ performance was simply phenomenal, and it is unlikely that Cherokee’s theater department could ever find a better Sebastian. It is certain that he and the rest of Cherokee’s drama department will continue to put on amazing productions in the spring and for long after.
