A Utah Theater Review by BJ Wright
I just returned from Payson Community Theater’s production of Shrek The Musical. It provided a very fun-filled evening for my daughter and me. As we walked in the theater at Payson High School, we were greeted by several smiling faces, and a rather full auditorium. It was great to see an audience of all ages anticipating seeing their favorite large, green ogre on stage.
The stage version of Shrek follows the basic story line of the popular DeamWorks movie. There are a few differences here and there to make it work as a live theater show, as well as an added scene or two that add additional background stories to the characters we have become familiar with over the years.
As I am sitting here reflecting on the show, there are several things that keep running through my head. First, the costumes were great! The smooth green velvet dress worn by Fiona was beautiful, and a great contrast to the rough rope-like clothes worn by Shrek. The costumes for Lord Farquaad were hilarious, and very effective in making him look short. I could go on naming costumes that I enjoy looking at, but I will be brief and say this: The costumes looked beautiful, and did a good job of adding to the story being told on stage. The costumes could have easily been a distraction, but they were not. Kudos to Costume Supervisor Colleen Carrasco, and Costume Designers Kris Holley, Miranda Duke, Kristi Peck, Noelle Peck, and Jared Condor.
Another strength of this show was the chemistry on stage between the lead actors. I commend Artistic Director Michael Carrasco for casting such a cohesive group, and then staging the scenes in such a way that the chemistry between the actors can be felt. This is especially true of the chemistry between Shrek (Steve Dunford) and Donkey (Nate Dunford) and Shrek and Fiona (Chelsea Kennedy).
As Shrek, Steve Dunford was able to take us on a roller coaster of emotions, from angry to annoyed, and mischievous to falling in love for the first time. Pair that with a powerful voice to belt out the songs beautifully and I’d say you have a very effective Shrek. My favorite vocal of the night from Steve came during the song “Who I’d Be.” I really could feel torment of knowing who you’d want to be, but knowing because of what you look like, it would never happen.
Donkey (Nate Dunford) brought a character to the table that reminded me of a little brother who has to follow his big brother around and be right in the middle of all the action. It was perfect for the character of Donkey. Nate also had to compete with the Dragon and several puppeteers in several scenes. It was nice to see that he was able to draw enough attention to himself to not be upstaged by the big red dragon and its many puppeteers moving around the stage.
Fiona (Chelsea Kennedy) was also spot on, helping me feel her despair of being stuck in the tower, as well as feeling her confusion when she realizes she is in love with Shrek. Kennedy has a very melodic voice that was easy to listen to. I can’t mention Fiona without mentioning the other two actors who play Fiona at a younger age. Olivia Sandor plays young Fiona, and Amber Southwick plays teenage Fiona. One of my favorite songs of the evening is entitled, “I Know it’s Today” and was sung beautifully by all three of these ladies.
Elderly males looking for fun in their 5mg cialis love-life can get Kamagra online through internet based online pharmacy. For men there cute-n-tiny.com generico levitra on line is blue color diamond shaped pill. The reason why even the generic versions have become popular as there brand name pill is simply because there is no cialis 5mg tadalafil difference in the effectiveness of the medicine. Never devour more sildenafil price than the suggested measurement as this may affect your safety.
Finally I would like to praise the comedic timing of Lord Farquaad (Steve Poulsen). Whether it was a well-timed hand gesture, or a cleverly delivered line, Steve always managed to bring a smile to my face. It would have been easy for him to rely on his costume, and the fact that majority of the time he was on stage he was on his knees, but he took on the whole character and brought it to life.
With all the good, comes some bad. I was rather disappointed with the sound and lighting cues tonight. There were times when I had forgotten I was watching a community theater production, only to be pulled back to reality when a light cue was missed or a microphone didn’t work correctly. Unfortunately I missed a lot of the opening number which gave information about Shrek and Fiona not given in the movie. Hopefully in the nights to come, the problems can be addressed and the audience will be able to hear all of the actors.
Overall I had a very enjoyable evening. The show is well worth the ticket price of $8. Shrek plays at Payson High School through Labor Day. Grab your family, neighbors, and friends and take them to see this production of Shrek The Musical. You won’t be disappointed.
For more information visit http://www.paysoncommunitytheater.com
Plays 8/24, 8/27-31, 9/2. 7:30 PM
Payson High School
1050 S Main St Payson, UT 84651
0 Comments