With The Denver Post, Alan Menken talks about the upcoming stage adaptation of The Little Mermaid, while also reminiscing about his late writing partner, Howard Ashman. “I talk to him. He shows up in my dreams all the time,” says Menken. Still, the composer promises that the new songs in the upcoming musical are as good as the ones in the animated feature. Calling lyricist Glenn Slater “a fantastic match for Howard’s style,” Menken comments, “I honestly think if you didn’t know the original songs, you wouldn’t know where Howard’s work leaves off and Glenn’s begins. It’s seamless.”