Shrek

Shrek first appeared in the cinemas and on our screens in 2001, and as with many successful animated films, was turned into a musical in 2005. This was my first time seeing this show.  As most will know the general story of the Ogre, Donkey, Fiona and Farquaad, I’ll just get down to the production itself.

Two of the main characters, Shrek and Donkey were played by Tom Ledsham and Sam Wicks respectively.

Being onstage a large part of the time, they were tasked with engaging the audience throughout with their love/hate relationship changing to a mutual respect and friendship dynamic whilst burping, farting, singing and dancing their way through the show. Both characters have very distinct accents in the film and other stage productions, and for the most part, Tom and Sam carried these off well. On the odd occasion, the accents / speed of delivery themselves made a few lines unclear, though the action onstage carried these scenes through any of this.

Sarah Hicks gave a strong, confident performance as Princess Fiona, the light and shade of her character shining through. The relationships between her and Shrek, Donkey and Farquaad were some of the highlights of the show. I must say, one of my favourite parts of the show was the song / transformation of Princess Fiona from child to adult. Although only a small part of the production, there must have been a lot of time spent on this, the harmonies were exquisite.

John Beamer played Lord Farquaad. Whilst short of stature, John never left us short of laughs: you could tell that John really enjoyed this role, though his poor patellas must have been sore by the end of the week.

Pinocchio and Gingy / Fairy Godmother were played by Ryan Fisher and Faye Cooper, both of them bringing their experience and expertise to the roles. Their diction was perfect throughout, and they made the most of their parts.

As you might guess, with so many fairytale creatures in this show I couldn’t possibly mention all of them for fear of missing some people out, but from each Little Pig to the transvestite Big Bad Wolf, everyone played their part. Shout out too, for the Little Shreks (Ethan Shimwell, Harry Shanks), Young Fionas (Sophia Mellonie, Eva Loynd) and Teen Fionas (Lottie Pye, Lucy Bunce).

Last, but by no means least, the Dragon. The Dragon was a fantastic addition to the production, it looked amazing. Having a Dragon as good as this needs somebody who can do it justice vocally. Have no fear, Charlotte Akister’s voice was perfect for the role - her vocal gymnastics were a pleasure to listen to - well done.

Chorus wise, everyone looked, moved and sounded great. All were well drilled in their dance numbers and facial expressions, with bright, colourful costumes. I did feel that on the odd occasion, costumes may have restricted some of the movement of the principals - but these were few and far between.

Having never seen or listened to the show before, I knew what to expect story-wise, but musically I made the (wrong) assumption that it would be a “juke box” musical - it isn’t. Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing is probably down to individual taste. The performers were great, and the audience of adults and children alike loved it, and that’s what counts.

Staging wise, those who know me know that I’m not particularly a fan of LED screens. For this show, however, I do believe that it would be difficult to produce this show without it: with so many set pieces, locations and the finale, cloths and solid set would be quite restrictive. LED screens are great if they enhance a show- in this case, I personally think it was essential. You could tell that the technical team had spent a lot of time ensuring that the definition and lighting were spot on for this production, it showed. With all the other set pieces from the film (including exploding birds) the production had all you could want from Shrek.

Musical Director Angela Potter had obviously worked everyone hard with this production and it showed.

Sharon Bell as Director and Choreographer definitely put this group through their paces - you could tell that everyone up there was thoroughly enjoying themselves, and this came across the footlights in spades. The production team are no doubt proud of what they created.

Thank you, Morecambe Warblers for your invite and hospitality.

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