THEATRE: Shrek The Musical

Myself and my son went to see Shrek at the Wolverhampton Grand theatre and we had a great time.


Actor Dean Chisnall did an excellent job as Shrek as did Bronte Barbe as Princess Fiona. As Donkey, Idriss Kargbo seemed to gain confidence vocally as the performance went on and truly shone in the second half of the show.

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My personal favourite characters were Pinocchio (played by James Lacey) and Lord Farquaad, (hilariously played by Gerard Carey) who both had the audience in stitches with their humourous antics.

 

The music and costumes were very impressive too and Gingy (The Gingerbread Man) and the Dragon were amazing visually.

 

The humour was sometimes subtly in the lyrics and sometimes a lot more obvious. The audience seemed to really lap up the cruder moments and there was a great  atmosphere from the very start, with a lot of members (including myself) getting into the spirit by wearing green ears!

 

The story remained true to the film version with the occasional modern twist. The premise is that ogre Shrek wants to save his swamp and Lord Farquaad wants to mary Princess Fiona, amongst a lot of fairy tale misfit characters. The themes of the way Shrek gradually bonds with Donkey and the love story with Princess Fiona are both funny and heart-warming, like the film.

 

Fans of the film will not be disappointed, but regardless of whether you have seen the film, I would recommend Shrek to anyone young or old who is looking for a fun, uplifting and enjoyable night out!

 

Karen Hill.