Netflix's 'MerPeople' is 'poor representation' of mermaid community, native performer says

Imari Stout was born a mermaid. Well, maybe she wasn't born with a sparkling, fish-like tail, but she was originally named after the popular red-headed Disney princess who lives under the sea.

"My mom named me Ariel ... shortly after ('The Little Mermaid') came out," Stout, a Springfield native, said. "Ariel was her favorite Disney princess, she loved mermaids and she had always been an ocean girl. She changed that name after I was born to Imari because she thought it fit me more."

Today, Stout is as close as one can get to a real-life mermaid. She is a professional mermaid performer for Wands and Wishes Mermaids, an extension of Wands and Wishes Occasions, a company that provides fairytale characters for special events. For eight months out of this year, Stout, who performs as Mermaid Naia, is traveling with the Wands and Wishes Pod, swimming in aquariums across the country. A "pod" is a group of mermaids (or mermen). The Wands and Wishes Pod is made up of about 27 active performers, Stout said.

Mermaids have been all the craze lately, with the recent release of Disney's live-action remake of "The Little Mermaid" and Netflix's documentary series, "MerPeople." The four-part docuseries highlights the decades-long mermaid show at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park in Florida, the history of Mertailor, a mermaid tail manufacturer, and the Circus Siren Pod, a group of professional mermaids.

Stout has been a professional mermaid for eight years, performing with Wands and Wishes since 2019 and performing as a mermaid with Prestige Princess in Los Angeles between 2015-2019. Stout said "MerPeople" is a "very poor representation" of the work she does and the professional community she is a part of. Specifically, she noted two themes she wished were addressed more in the docuseries: safety and conservation.

Wands and Wishes mermaids only perform in aquariums with accreditation from the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, Stout said. AZA accreditation certifies that an establishment passes national standards for "animal welfare, veterinary care, conservation, education, guest services, physical facilities, safety, staffing, finance and governing body," according to the AZA website. In Missouri, there are only seven establishments with an AZA accreditation, including Springfield's Dickerson Park Zoo and Wonders of Wildlife.

Performing in solely AZA-accredited aquariums ensures the safety of both mermaid performers and wildlife who call aquariums home.

Stout has performed in aquariums like Adventure Aquarium in Camden, New Jersey and OdySea Aquarium in Scottsdale, Arizona, swimming with animals like fiddler rays, southern stingrays, zebra sharks, nurse sharks, tiger sharks and eels. The first time she performed in an aquarium was with stingrays.

"When we go to these aquariums, we're not just going in and diving in," Stout said. "We're going and having a tour and we're able to learn about the wildlife in each exhibit ... I learned so much about stingrays that any fear I had of the unknown kind of just melted away into pure awe and admiration."

Conservation education is a big part of the Wands and Wishes experience, for performers and guests.

"We do that by presenting ourselves as ocean guardians," Stout said, adding that Wands and Wishes mermaids follow "strict eco-friendly policies." They only use reusable bags and water bottles and avoid using plastic utensils, toothbrushes and straws.

For Stout, conservation education comes first and performing in the aquariums is an additional "perk."

"More than anything, I've been so humbled, getting to co-exist with the wildlife," Stout said. "We're so uneducated on how wildlife exists in nature that we become very afraid of it and we think it's going to hurt us. Doing this job, I've really learned to trust in what I've learned about them and their nature."

When it comes to safety, Wands and Wishes mermaids must also receive Advanced Open Water Diver, Freediver and Diver Stress and Rescue certifications before they are allowed to perform in aquariums, Stout said.

Professional mermaids take scuba diving even one step further, as they don't perform with scuba masks or buoyancy compensator devices, which are usually attached to a diver. Rather, mermaids get oxygen from a regulator on a long hose to avoid disrupting the reality they are creating for guests.

"We put every safety protocol in place," Stout said. "We have safety divers who travel with us. I didn't even see that represented once in 'MerPeople,' where they are diving with wildlife with no safeties. For us, safety is number one priority. Ocean conservation, number two priority."

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Amateur mermaids of the Ozarks

While Stout dislikes "MerPeople" from a professional perspective, some Springfield mermaids thought the docuseries was a good representation of community mermaiding, which represents folks who mermaid more casually.

Jessica Green, 25, began performing as a mermaid at YMCA birthday parties in Springfield when she was 12 years old and did so off and on for two years. Though she is not a professional mermaid today, over the years Green has casually participated in mermaiding, whether it be swimming in her parent's pool or modeling for photoshoots.

As an adult, Green was even able to swim at Weeki Wachee Springs State Park in a designated public swimming area at Buc Bay. She described the experience as "otherworldly."

Since October 1947, Weeki Wachee Springs State Park has provided mermaid shows. The park gained international attention in 1959 when the American Broadcasting Company purchased the park and built the current theater, which seats up to 400 guests, according to the park's website.

Green said she thought "MerPeople" "genuinely painted a picture" of the mermaiding community.

"It was really cool because it's been this underground sub-culture that I've been a part of for so long and it got brought out to the light that it's never been in before," Green said.

In addition to performing and swimming, Green has also handcrafted spandex mermaid tails for children, which is the part of mermaiding she is still "really interested" in. Using neoprene spandex, Green made a handful of tails for others and some for herself, before she was able to afford the silicon tail she owns today. Green said she purchased her current silicon tail from Mertailor for $1,000.

One of the mermaid performers featured in the docuseries is Brittany Sparkles, a performer based in Little Rock, Arkansas. Through the course of the series, Sparkles overcomes challenges presented to her as a land-locked performer, ultimately becoming a part of the Circus Siren Pod.

Green said she enjoyed seeing a Midwest mermaid performer represented in the docuseries.

"I can really only count on one hand other land-locked Missouri mermaids that I know," Green said.

One of Green's mermaid friends is Olivia Hammock. Hammock, 28, used to live in Springfield but now lives and works in Florida in Disney's financial department. She received her first mermaid tail as a birthday gift at age 20.

Hammock gained popularity as a local mermaid while she was a student at Missouri State University. Six days a week, Hammock would slip into her tail and swim around the Foster Recreation Center pool on campus. It wasn't long before she was deemed the "Missouri State Mermaid."

While in Springfield, Hammock performed for birthday parties and local events, including a Christmas gala at Wonders of Wildlife in 2015. Hammock spent the evening perched up on a rock in the aquarium's shark and stingray touch tank, taking photos with guests.

Hammock said she has not watched "MerPeople," but she is social media acquaintances with a few of the performers in the docuseries, including Blixunami, or "Blix," a nonbinary mer-performer from South Carolina.

Though she doesn't perform professionally right now, Hammock said she does try to swim in her tail at her home pool daily.

"It's really empowering," Hammock said of mermaiding. "I think everyone who is not afraid of water should try it at least once because when you have that tail on and you're flying through the water, it's a really magical feeling."

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An expensive hobby

Jenae Templeton, 24, purchased her current fabric mermaid tail for around $100 from Fin Fun Mermaid at age 18. Templeton said she has an interest in performing professionally but has only worn it in the water in swimming pools and some outdoor areas like Moonshine Beach at Table Rock Lake before.

Templeton said she enjoyed "MerPeople" but found the representation of the number of professional mermaids unrealistic.

"I don't think a lot of people do it professionally because like they said in the series, it doesn't pay the bills unless you're (a professional performer)," Templeton said, adding that the price of silicon tails makes the industry unobtainable for some to enter.

For reference, a custom silicon mermaid tail from Mertailor is $2,000. This includes a "realistic fluke design inspired by real sea life," a custom color palette and 3-D scale detail, according to the Mertailor website.

A signature line mermaid tail (the highest quality tail) from Mernation starts at $3,500, which includes handcrafted 3-D scale detail, a fiberglass monofin and a custom color palette, according to the Mernation website. Hammock said when she purchased her tail a few years ago from Mernation it cost $3,000.

Stout said Wands and Wishes mermaids share tails purchased from FinFolk Productions. According to the FinFolk Productions website, custom full-silicone tails start at around $5,000.

The lasting impact of 'The Little Mermaid'

Conservation and safety are important aspects of mermaiding to Stout, but so is a set of diverse performers. Stout said she was disappointed to see "MerPeople" focus on the Weeki Wachee Springs State Park pod, which she believes is not representative of all performers.

"I could be wrong, but I've never seen a (person of color) mermaid in their pod ever," Stout said of Weeki Wachee. "They kind of built this reputation for having a certain look and maintaining it, where as other pods like Wands and Wishes is very diverse in shapes, size and color."

The News-Leader contacted Weeki Wachee Springs State Park for further information about its performers but did not reach anyone by press deadline. The park does not have a list of its performers on its website.

Stout said the recent release of the live-action remake of "The Little Mermaid" has been "lifechanging" for her. Released on May 26, Ariel is played by Halle Bailey. This casting decision received backlash for several years, as some were unhappy with Disney's choice of a new Black princess.

For Stout, this representation in "The Little Mermaid" has both expanded her work load and fulfilled a childhood dream.

"I spent my whole childhood with Ariel being my favorite princess and constantly being told, 'Oh you can't be her because you look like you do,'" Stout recalled. "And now those kids who said that to me are all grown with kids of their own and they are taking those kids to see 'The Little Mermaid,' who looks a lot more like me than them."

Stout's work as a mermaid continues out of the water. Last year, Stout served as the singing vocalist for the character Harmonique in the animated series, "Mermaze Mermaidz." The show follows a group of five mermaid friends who must save their underwater city. The series is available to stream on Netflix and YouTube.

Where can you mermaid in Springfield?

Folks interested in mermaiding in Springfield may do so at almost any body of water, including public pools.

Mermaid tails, whether used by adults or children, are allowed at Springfield-Greene County Park indoor and outdoor pools, said Jenny Edwards, park board public information administrator. But anyone wearing a mermaid tail should be accompanied by another adult within arm's reach, as tails are difficult to stand up in.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield mermaids weigh in on on Netflix docuseries 'MerPeople'