A fantastically fun and silly swamp scented show
Surely at this point Shrek needs no introduction. The hilariously farcical take on happily-ever-afters, satirising everything from Walt Disney to Hans Christian Andersen containing more fart jokes than you can shake an onion at and providing us with more quotable lines than Casablanca.
Shrek is a cultural phenomenon for those of us who were kids in the early 2000s and the musical continues its green, swamp-scented legacy. The story is more or less beat-for-beat the same as the film, with the occasional addition providing us with answers from long burning questions such as: ‘Why does Lord Farquaad hate fairy tale creatures’ and ‘What is Shrek’s backstory. All tied together with some incredibly catchy show tunes (Smash Mouth does not make an appearance, however there is a singalong to ‘I’m A Believer’ at the end).
This is a musical where it is very easy for the supporting ensemble of fairy tale creatures to completely steal the show - both with their personalities and impressive dance numbers. Mark D’Arcy and Georgia Buckland in particular as Pinocchio and the Gingerbread Man (amongst other roles). The absolute show-stealer however has to be James Gillan as Lord Farquaad - opting to play the character as camp as he possibly can, he definitely brings as much sass as he can to any scene that he is in (followed closely by Brandon Lee Sears who did an amazing job as Donkey).
The set itself has gone through several changes since the show last toured. With the addition of screens and projected backdrops mixing with the enchanting costume and physical set design, the show does a really good job of bringing you into a fantasy world. There are some truly incredible props too - ranging from dragon puppets to exploding birds.
Compared with previous tours of the show there are a number of notable changes this time around - some for the better, however some fail to capture the magic and hilarity of previous runs. On the one hand, the removal of a few problematic words from a number of songs can only be viewed as a good thing (looking at you Mr Wolf), some decisions however were a bit more questionable. For example, having a Lord Farquaad who was taller than half of his guards and Fiona is fine, however if you aren’t going to have him on his signature kneepads for the performance, at least remove some of the lines mentioning how short he is!
Overall though this was a fantastically fun and silly performance with the whole cast clearly giving it their all. This is the perfect show for families- especially if your kids are yet to see the movie!
Shrek the Musical plays at Nottingham's Theatre Royal until 21 March 2024.
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