Friendly ogre takes to the stage / ‘Shrek’ with laughter
The show promises to be quite extraordinary, deliciously funny and a joyous romp for the whole family.
KICKSTART’S breath-taking West End musical adaptation of the hit movie ‘Shrek!’ comes to life at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre from 23 May until 28 June.
KickstArt Theatre proudly presents the South African premier of this fabulous, fun, charming and hugely funny musical, starring Lyle Buxton in the title role, Rory Booth as Donkey and Jessica Sole as Princess Fiona. Also part of the cast are Jacobus van Heerden as the diminutive Lord Farquaad, Graeme Wicks as Pinocchio, Charon Williams Ros as Gingy the Gingerbread Man and Peter Court as the ferocious, fire-breathing dragon, with a huge cast of fairytale characters and a chorus of tap dancing rats.
‘Shrek – The Musical’ is directed by Steven Stead, designed by Greg King, choreographed by Janine Bennewith, lighting by Tina le Roux with musical direction by Shelley McLean. The story revolves around a benign ogre named Shrek who lives contentedly alone in a swamp. However, his solitude is disrupted when a band of disgruntled fairytale creatures show up on his property after having been banished from the Kingdom of Duloc, on pain of death, by the evil Lord Farquaad.
Irritated by having to share his swamp, Shrek journeys to see Farquaad with the intention of regaining his privacy. On the road, he rescues a talkative donkey who insists on tagging along to show him the way. Shrek and Donkey arrive in Duloc where Farquaad demands that Shrek rescue his intended, Princess Fiona. The two unlikely friends set off to save Fiona. After a quest involving a fire-breathing dragon, Princess Fiona is ‘rescued’ from the tower by Shrek.
On the way back to Duloc, Shrek and Princess Fiona get better acquainted and Donkey tries unsuccessfully to match-make them.
As Princess Fiona and Lord Farquaad are about to be married, there is an uprising from the fairytale characters and Princess Fiona realises that Lord Farqaad is perhaps not her champion after all. And in the tradition of all good fairy stories, the villain is vanquished, the hero finds true love, and they all live happily ever after.
Shows are on at 7pm Tuesday to Saturday and at 2.30pm on Saturday and Sunday. Tickets range from R200 to R295 each and are available through Computicket. For block bookings of 10 or more, contact Ailsa Windsor of Going Places: 083 250 2690 or editor.goingplacessa@gmail.com.
