Tickets to Shrek Are Tickets to a Musical Fantasyland

Come for the fantasy, come for the show, come for the music, come one, come all! For millions of moviegoers who became fans of the Ogre Shrek, now there is a Broadway hit with a whole new original score, some marvelous acting and fabulous sets. Shrek is great entertainment for all ages and attitudes.

The musical Shrek opened on Broadway December 14, 2008, and for audiences from childhood to retirement, it’s a delightful romp into the life and times of an Ogre named Shrek and a cast of unforgettable characters. Shrek is played by Brian d’Arcy James, and his leading lady, the Princess Fiona, by Sutton Foster. Daniel Breaker is the Donkey who talks – a lot! The role of Lord Farquaad is played by Christopher Seiber. Along with a host of other fairy tale creatures, including a fire breathing Dragon, they put on a heckuva show!

For anyone not familiar with the Shrek phenomenon, the movie and the musical are based on William Steig’s book about a lonely green Ogre (Shrek) who lives in a swamp. He thinks no one will ever love him because he’s an Ogre. When the rest of the cast starts showing up in his swamp (they’re various refugees from a Kingdom called Duloc, ruled by Lord Farquard) Shrek’s solitude is over. Together with the loquacious Donkey, he sets off to find Lord Farquaad and restore his gloomy privacy.

When they finally reach Farquard’s castle, they find a tournament going on, the winner meant to rescue the lovely Princess Fiona from captivity by a fiery female Dragon, so Lord Farquaad can marry her and become a ‘legitimate’ king, but our heroes get in the way. Shrek and Donkey defeat all the knights, Donkey defuses the Dragon with sweet talk, and Shrek finds the Princess. What the audience (and Shrek) does not know at this point is that Fiona has a secret: she turns into an Ogre herself, every day at sundown!

Though they have escaped the Dragon (she’s gotten tied up), poor Shrek is just not Fiona’s idea of a handsome prince. She believes she is meant to find her one true love, whose kiss will break the enchantment that causes her to turn into an Ogre at sundown every day. As the true nature of each character shows itself, Shrek and Fiona begin to realize that they have a great deal in common, but they continue to misunderstand each other. Shrek slouches back to his swamp, and Fiona resolves to fulfill her “destiny” and marry Farquaad.

Ah, but here comes the cavalry, in the form of Donkey and Dragon, who have turned to each other in their loneliness. Donkey persuades Shrek to declare his love for Fiona, and Dragon flies them back to Farquaad’s castle in time to break up the wedding. Fiona shows her “true nature” to all, and though it is not what she expected, all is well, since Shrek finds her more beautiful than ever. Farquaad, of course, is greatly displeased, but Dragon eats him right up, so that’s OK.

In a truly fairytale denouement, the two Ogres are united in marriage, Dragon and Donkey resume their unusual but affectionate ‘relationship’ and the music swells in a very satisfactory conclusion. Like all the best fairy tales, this one is entrancing to children and adults alike, since it speaks to the child in all of us. There is some rather good social satire, as well as mild spoofs of such popular musicals as Gypsy and A Chorus Line. Fans of the movie (which won the first-ever Academy Award for Best Animated Picture in 2001) will not be disappointed with the stage adaptation. Tickets to Shrek are a guarantee of good fun!