Shrek The Musical

Darlington Operatic Society’s latest show took us to the swamp and beyond with Shrek the Musical and it was hard to see if they could continue to raise the bar following their recent successes, most notably Priscilla.

Not only did they raise the bar, but they also showed just why they are such a highly respected and well followed Amateur Society. With a cast and crew of almost 100 members working flat out for an exhausting 2 hours they produced a show to match any professional company.

Before I mention the cast performances, I must give huge praise to the backstage team; the set could have been straight from a movie, the costumes were bright and vibrant and all the above was swapped about with pace and precision. I don’t envy the Dressers, make-up and wardrobe teams with each cast member having a minimum of 3 characters, each changing multiple times throughout the production.

When you take on a show like Shrek you also take on the responsibility of recreating such famous characters from the film, and with the theatre packed with fans of all ages (it was great to see so many families in the audience) this mega talented cast did not let anyone down.

There is no such thing as a Chorus with this production, the ensemble cast members excelled in the multiple roles. The opening number of Big Bright Beautiful World may have introduced us to the main characters however it was Story of My Life that really got this party started. The stage was packed with a wonderful characterization of all our favourite fairytale characters. Every single member was outstanding with great vocals, dance ability and most importantly were able to stay in character throughout the whole show.

Without wanting to highlight anyone from this group there were some who really stood out; George Hurley had the perfect whiney and high pitched vocals for Pinocchio – definitely not a wooden performance; The 3 blind Mice (Sam Morrison, Sarah Harland and Lucy Adams) were the perfect backing singers to Donkey in Make a Move, all 3 showing off their expert vocal ability; Katie Blythe doubling up as The Gingerbread Man and Sugar Plum Fairy was outstanding, the ability to switch vocals between the 2 in a millisecond is a skill not to go un-noticed and she certainly gave the song Freak Flag everything she had – wow!

Darlington are blessed with such a strong member base and this cast was testament to that, everyone was so strong that you felt many them could have easily slipped into the large principal roles – this must have been a nightmare to cast such was the quality. The future is clearly bright with some great Junior members, I was lucky to have seen Alfie Webster and Lucy Wakefield in the roles of Young Shrek and Fiona, both showed off their great talent. Lucy wowed us in the Trio alongside Princess Fiona (Ellen Dunbavin) and Rachel Geddes as Teen Fiona. The 3 of them bouncing off each other with ease giving us a vocal masterclass in I Know It’s Today, Lucy holding her own against 2 great singers.

One of the biggest visual effects of the evening would come from Dragon. Being moved via the cast, the amazing lighting, designed by Alex Edwards, was a delight to watch and voiced by Rhiannon Walker was also a joy to listen to and you could feel the emotion come across with ease.

One of the standout performances of the evening must be Leighton Taylor-Jones for his simply side-splitting portrayal of Lord Farquad. Not only was his comic timing perfect, but the facial reactions were also a delight, and he had the audience in the palm of his hand. Moving around for the entire production on his knees this must have been exhausting.

Donkey must be one of the most iconic characters in Shrek and Ben Connor did an amazing job in this role. Thankfully the costume allowed us to see his facial expressions which were brilliant, the constant jaw and mouth movements when off script alongside the permanent leg movements showed just how much work had gone into creating this character. Add to this some lovely vocals, great one liners and brilliant interaction with Shrek and Ben had delivered us the perfect Donkeeeey.

The role of Princess Fiona is being shared for this show between Claire Willmer and for my evening, Ellen Dunbavin. Ellen was a perfect choice for this role, she not only brought stunning vocals to the song with a range so high it literally knocked a bird of its perch, but a warmth and tender tone brilliantly displayed in Morning Person and finally in This is Our Story. Not only was she able to show a soft side but brought real punch and sass to the role wonderfully standing up to the strong male roles around her. The duet between her and Shrek of I Think I Got You Beat was sensational, I found myself laughing at farts more than my 7-year-old son normally would! Well done Ellen and I am sure Claire will be wonderful in the role too based on previous shows I have seen.

Every show needs a title role and it was wonderful to Nicholas Fletcher-Holmes take on this monster (well Ogre) of a part. In what must have been a scorching costume and prosthetic outfit, Nicholas managed to carry the show along at a great pace displaying all the “layers” of this character at ease. A great visual performance backed up with a fantastic Scottish accent which didn’t dip for the whole show. Getting vocals pitch perfect is a job well above most of us, but to do it with a strong accent and to carry off great emotions within this is a mammoth task yet Nicolas smashed it, the solos When words Fail and Build a Wall were an absolute delight.

Occasionally you watch a show and sit there envious that you were not involved, every single member of the cast seemed to be having the time of their lives and huge credit for this production must go the lead production team. The technical side expertly led by Adam Martin and it was lovely to see Steven Hood back with DOS. As Musical Director he led the 15 strong orchestra and was balanced brilliantly with the cast whose harmonies and vocal work under Steven still shone through despite the distraction of the colour and entertainment on stage.

Directing this mammoth show would be enough for most people with over 40 in the cast so the fact that Joanne hand also choregraphed every number is a huge accolade. Every scene was slick, every change practiced to perfection and the dance routines (there were a lot of them) were outstanding with the whole cast in perfect sync with each other. The Duloc routines especially were so cleverly worked and were only matched by the party spirit in I’m A Believer when the cast and Audience all came together to party and celebrate a Shrektacular evening’s entertainment. Darlington are very lucky to have you Joanne

Thank you all for a wonderful evening and I am already excited for April and your production of Grease.

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