Shrek the musical

It was certainly a big, beautiful world in Wakefield as WWRTC opened on Tuesday in their latest hit, Shrek the musical. From the moment the orchestra, under the excellent direction of James Greatorex, struck their first note, we the audience, knew we were going to witness something special, and boy, did we. 

It takes a society with guts to tackle Shrek, as every character is so well known and the audience know exactly what we want to see. WWRTC didn’t disappoint here, we got what we wanted and more.  Josh Roberts as Shrek, was simply stunning from his singing voice, to characterisation,  and a perfect Scottish accent. Josh was  every inch the Shrek we love. I must praise the make up department here, as Josh was unrecognisable and all you saw was Shrek, it was if he had been picked up directly from the film and placed on the Theatre Royal stage.  I understand Josh spends over two hours in the makeup chair, and boy is the end result worth it.

Emily Huddleston is captivating and extremely funny as Princess Fiona with a belt to rival Celine Dion. Emily was in character throughout, be that breaking wind, or tackling more serious issues within the piece. The perfect princess. My favourite song of the night was ‘I Hope It’s Today’ where Emily was joined by Darcey Beech as Teen Fiona and Pennie Fox as young Fiona. Simply, but beautifully staged and amazing harmonies.

The vertically challenged Lord Farquaad was in the more than capable  hands of Matthew Roberts who rode around on a plastic horse and managed to get every ounce of comedy out of this demanding role. I hope Matt’s knees recover soon. 

For me the performance of the night came from Matthew Roddis as Donkey. Every time Matthew came on to stage I was captivated by his performance and couldn’t take my eyes off him. The way he delivered his lines was a master class in comedy. This is one performance that I will remember for the rest of my years. Exceptional. 

The main principals were well supported in this production by a superb ensemble. I must mention Daniel Fenwick as Pinocchio who was anything but wooden, Rachel Hirst Marshall as the Dragon, what a voice and a great dress! The dancing talent of Sophie Parkin also didn’t go unnoticed in this production. 

This was another Dee Bennie-Marshall triumph. If you’ve never been in or seen a production directed and choreographed by Dee, I urge you all to book tickets to see her next show or join one of the societies she works with, you won’t be disappointed.

My 7 year old goddaughter and I left the theatre on such a high thank you WWRTC, I’m most definitely a believer. 

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