![](https://www.sardinesmagazine.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/SHREK-Flyer-2022.jpg)
Show: Shrek The Musical
Society: Abbey Musical Society
Venue: The Forum, Barrow-in-Furness. 28 Duke Street, Barrow-in-Furness
Credits: Music by Jeanine Tesori, book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire. Based on the Dreamworks animation motion picture and the book by William Steig.
Type: Sardines
Author: Graham Whalan
Performance Date: 14/03/2022
Shrek The Musical
Graham Whalan | 15 Mar 2022 12:09pm
‘Patience and perseverance have a magical effect, before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.’ So said the 6th President of the USA John Quincy Adams in 1824. Although he was talking about his election victory rather than Abbey Musical Society’s current staging of Shrek the Musical two hundred or so years later, this particular piece of wisdom could easily be applied to exactly that. Cancelled after just one performance in 2020 because of the pandemic the future looked bleak indeed but, on the evidence of last night’s re-staging, patience and perseverance have clearly won through and, as predicted, exerted their magical effect. The production was proof indeed that AMS were back, as members once again unleashed their energy and enthusiasm on an appreciative and packed house.
The principal players all fully and confidently inhabited their roles with, for me, the stand-out performance coming from Will Patrick as the diminutive Lord Farquaad. ‘Small in stature but with a huge personality’ his delivery and comic timing were spot on, and whether waddling, swaggering, or shuffling on his spindly little legs he was a joy to watch. Chris Barker as Shrek and Mark Johnson as Donkey sparked off each other well and, although both never knowingly under-acted, this only added to the quality of their inter-play. Both infused their parts with the requisite accents, with Mark Johnson having more success in carrying it off. Chris Barker’s vocals were very strong but his lines, though confidently delivered, did lack clarity at times with the result that some of the jokes tended to be lost. Layla Davies gave us a lively and feisty Princess Fiona and, as well as being a talented vocalist, demonstrated an impressive flair for comedy. The kids in the audience particularly relished the toilet humour of I Got You Beat. (Well alright then, we all did). There was then an audible gasp from the audience at the appearance of the Dragon, authentic-looking and menacing as it was, accompanied then by its graceful movements across the stage and Melissa Evans’ gifted vocals.
The large cast of fairy-tale characters making up the ensemble, created a colourful spectacle indeed, with clearly a great deal of care and attention to detail having been given to their costumes and make-up, all enhanced by Sarah Powell’s reliable choreography. The tap-dancing rat routine was a particular highlight. The pace of the action did slow at times but this is perhaps as an unfortunate tendency of an opening night and I’m confident that this will not be a problem as the run continues. As I say, all the evidence was that the cast were simply relishing the opportunity to be back on the stage again, and there is no doubt that all the choral numbers successfully energised the audience.
I thought the production made use of imaginative staging too, the main feature being the use of a video wall to take us from scene to scene. This was of a high quality and worked well, except perhaps in the case of Lord Farquaad’s demise at the hands (? mouth) of the Dragon, where the action was less clear. There were some nice additional touches however such as the wobbly wooden bridge en route to the castle, the ‘reversing’ horse, and the exploding bird.
Whilst there are no particular showstoppers in the show the music is obviously a major ingredient, and the twelve-piece orchestra, marshalled with her usual skill by Angela Guntrip enriched the vocal performances and brought everything together. Overall, this large and talented cast walk in the footsteps of AMS’s long musical tradition and, despite the challenges of the last couple of years, it is clear that none of their energy or enthusiasm has been lost – quite the reverse in fact. John Quincy Adams would be proud.