CNN.com: Jumping into a pool of women and men wearing fish tails is like being in an aquarium where characters from a familiar Walt Disney movie have come to life.
The multicolored fins bedazzle the startled swimmer with their sparkles and their synthetic scales light up the chlorinated water. The mermaids, mermen and merchildren look at ease free diving up to 15 feet deep, their eyes wide open and their mouths fixed into effortless toothy-smiles. But what looks easy to these "merfolk," has actually taken a lot of time, practice and money.
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There are a lot of things about this article I find very impressive. I’m amazed by the work that goes into the construction of the mermaid tails. I’m impressed by the amount of skill it must take to swim in them. I’m also a big fan of Chris O’Brocki’s facial expressions to imitate the people that judge his merman attire, and the fact that he is fighting the stigma against men having stereotypically feminine interests. I think there are a lot of cool things about the idea of professional merpeople, and I’m really not surprised that the profession exists, I can think of a pretty large number of events (mostly involving commercials or children) where a live mermaid would be in demand. I’m also not surprised that being a professional merman is probably harder given that the demand is probably lower. I wouldn’t want to be a professional merman, but I would definitely love to try swimming with one of the mertails in this article, and I would be interested in working on a production that involves merpeople in some way.
This article is wild. I am really impressed at how well they reported on this convention of merpeople. I feel like a lot of times conventions get a lot of shade from reporters who don’t understand what they are seeing and just think it’s weird. But this article was really respectful and got some really interesting facts to share that show off the hard work that people put in. The fact that a tail can cost $2900, is amazing and shows that this is a real job. I really like how the other woman said it was like wearing a couture dress, but you can swim in it, and if you're willing and able to invest you can get a lot out of it. I would love to see more shows with merpeople in it because their dedication amazes me. In the article it says that a lot of them participate in videos to promote the protection of wildlife even swimming with real sharks and manta rays. That would be an amazing job to have.
I remember being a young girl and wanting to swim like a mermaid. There's always been an enchanting air with mermaid and sirens and things of that realm. As a young child I would go swimming at the local pool, go underwater and glide along the bottom of the floor as if I really was a mermaid. Reading this article now, it really astounds and impresses me that some people can seriously make a solid living out of being a mermaid or merman! It's amazing to think about what jobs exist in the year 2016-- being a mermaid or merman as a professional occupation would have never been possible 50 years ago. I am also really impressed with the quality of the construction of the tails. They look so well crafted and the fact that they have to be done so well to withstand the force and pressure of water is pretty amazing to me. This also points to the idea that really in the age of technology and social media that there is an in-group for anyone that is looking for one. If the internet did not exist and you felt weird about having this obsession with being a mermaid, you could potentially feel ostracized and like a weirdo. Now that this connecting power tool exists, you can find your niche no matter how strange it may be.
Why do I go to Carnegie Mellon when I could train to become a professional mermaid? Oh right, I can't swim. Like Michelle, I grew up with this deep fascination with mermaids. They were in the books I read, the movies I watched. I'm delighted that this niche market is being serviced. This career is also an excellent example of how a new hobby can transform into an enterprise. This job started out with just a few people who liked to pretend to be mermaids or were looking for a new form of exercise. Now it's a career. Mermaids are also creating jobs in other markets, after all, someone has to make that $2900 tail. It goes to prove that if you love something, you have a good chance of being able to support yourself by doing it. It's encouraging to keep that in mind in the entertainment industry. In short, I'm delighted for this community of merfolk. They have followed their passions and are doing well at it. My only wish is that I had known about this as a child. It would have been magical.
Here we have yet another example why North Carolina is the best state in America. No but really I do love this, I always kind of forget that these are positions that can exist, and they train so close to me! I would have loved this when I was a child. I will say it is insane to me that the nice silicone tails are around fifty pounds. Swimming is exhausting already, so I wonder what it Is like in those shells. I also wonder how they get around at events, because from the video it does not seem like the silicon shells have any give at all. Do they jump? Must they be carried? Who knows. I wonder if our costume design majors know of this, because if these tails really do go for $3,000 a piece it would be a great summer job. Also like, props to these professional mer people for chasing their dreams. Do it big mer people, I’m proud of u.
Watching the clip with this article reminded me of when I was a child, and wanted nothing more than to be a mermaid myself. I had the sudden memory of being on a swim team for small children, hair crispy with chlorine, and my coach charlie telling me to flex my ankles more on my flip-turns. "But mermaids don't have ankles!" I whined, thoroughly convinced that my time in the warm, chemically enhanced water made me a member if a different species.
It's been a long time since I've paused to think about that part of my life, and even longer since I've though about mermaids.
While it may be easy to trivialize the careers of people who live out childhood fantasies while swaddled in $3,000 silicon tails, I think that the sheer power of such a spectacle to evoke is one of the reasons that entertainment is such a powerful tool for change and other things. Just as these performers could take me back to sunny days at the community center pool in El Cerrito, years and miles away, similar acts could cause reflection and introspection on a level that other things couldn't. So, swim on, merpeople, swim on.
I clicked on this article because I was instantly reminded of my favorite piece of disney history. Back in the late 60's and early 70's, in the ride, the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea submarine, in the water, amidst oil and fumes and nastiness from the ride, young women were hired to be mermaids. These women were super-mistreated and that's awful, but i find the whole thing so strange and fascinating. There were "real" mystifying mermaids in Disney Land for a while. of course, after a few years, the sunburns and the fumes became too much of a n overarching problems and the gig was taken away, but maybe Disney should take notice again. I think it would be awesome if these tails were used at something like Ariel's Grotto at Disney, obviously minus the oil and fumes. They really are mystifying.
I am not sure how being a professional mermaid works, but i guess from what the article said, she probably performs at parties and stuff as a mermaid as well. Not too bad of a gig. In a way i find this so goofy and dumb, but also amazing and I'd sort of like to don one myself.
When I was younger I was obsessed with The Little Mermaid, even going as far as "marrying" our La-Z-Boy recliner, which was standing in for Prince Eric. I would have loved to have done something like this. As it was, my mother did enroll me in swim lessons. I can only imagine how adeptly navigating with one "leg" and added weight affects one's swimming. I think this hobby - and career for some - has many potential applications, a few of which were touched on in the article. As an enticement to teach kids to swim, I think this has great value. So too, the "eco activism" touched on in the article has the potential to be a powerful awareness-raiser. This up-and-coming hobby is also simply mesmerizing to watch, and the beauty and craftsmanship of the tails is staggering. Though a very small - and somewhat bizarre - performance subset, I think it has great merit.
As the wise Jasmine Lesane once said, "Do it big mer people, I'm proud of u."
Seriously though, this is a really wonderful article. Like a lot of things we do in theatre, I imagine people's first inclinations are to believe that what these people are doing is not that hard, so an article explaining the amount of hard work and dedication that go into their performance is great. I am so fascinated by the incredible costumes! They are so beautiful and intricate, and I love the way they say that they are formal wear for the water. I also find it totally crazy that these people are able to hold their breath for up to 3 minutes- WHAT? That's terrifying and amazing. I applaud these men and women for their very cool work.
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