Post by santtu on Sept 11, 2011 7:31:20 GMT -5
I wanted to see this show in London since I saw it on Broadway and quite liked it. I had heard they had made some changes and I was curious to see what has been changed.
* The opening scene is now a bit different. When the curtain rises we don't see the full stage but a stage-wide giant bookshelf set just behind the curtain. One of the books opens (is kicked open!) and in comes the adult Shrek. He tells us the story how his parents sent him away etc. ("Big Bright Beautiful World") and the scene is acted out "on the page of the story book" (= a hole where the page should be). The number has been re-written a bit since we see some villagers trying to burn young Shrek at the stake. Another book opens in the middle of the number - squashing adult Shrek behind it! - and in comes adult Fiona to tell how she was sent to the tower by her parents. Fiona's part is quite short but works better now, on Broadway it was done differently and not so clearly. Eventually the books close and the bookshelf set piece is pulled up to reveal Shrek's swamp and he sings the more rock-flavored part of the song on full stage.
* The magic mirror is now gone, the Gingerbread Man tells Lord Farquaad about Fiona.
* The dragon is different than it was on Broadway. Now we see the full dragon, with flapping wings and all. Four guys is needed to handle it. One woman gives voice to the dragon instead of a women's ensemble. The song "Donkey Pot Pie" is gone, sadly, and has been replaced by "Forever" which is not even nearly as good as "DPP".
* Sets are different in many places than what they were in the Broadway production, they're not as technical as they were on Broadway. Fiona's tower is not a 3-dimensional tower they can walk around of, but a traditional flat, "cut-out" set piece. The changes of Fiona during "I know it's today" are done with moving cloud set pieces on stage. "Travel song" is done pretty much like it was on Broadway, but now they have the hanging bridge rising from the floor which is a nice effect. The escape from the dragon castle (during/after "This is how a dream comes true") is now shorter. Lord Farquaad's "The Ballad of Farquaad" has a different set now.
* The dragon's appearance in the wedding scene is totally different now. Instead of crashing her head in from the church window the dragon flies in from the auditorium ceiling.
* They do have "I'm a believer" in the end, which I thought was unnecessary. The show should end with "This is our story". I know they added it to the Broadway production, but they shouldn't have done it even there, it just doesn't fit.
The actors were mostly great. I saw Dean Chisnall, an understudy, as Shrek and he was excellent! Wonderful voice! Richard Blackwood was great Donkey, although I thought he hurried with some of his lines. Nigel Harman was brilliant as Lord Farquaad - in a lot of ways I liked him even more than Christopher Sieber on Broadway! Amanda Holden (the woman judge of Britain's Got Talent when Susan Boyle was there) played Fiona, and I have to say I wasn't impressed. Clearly pregnant, she just didn't seem to be very interested in playing the role. It was like she was holding back or something.
There were a lot of kids in the audience that night and they just loved it. So did the adults! It's a fun show.
* The opening scene is now a bit different. When the curtain rises we don't see the full stage but a stage-wide giant bookshelf set just behind the curtain. One of the books opens (is kicked open!) and in comes the adult Shrek. He tells us the story how his parents sent him away etc. ("Big Bright Beautiful World") and the scene is acted out "on the page of the story book" (= a hole where the page should be). The number has been re-written a bit since we see some villagers trying to burn young Shrek at the stake. Another book opens in the middle of the number - squashing adult Shrek behind it! - and in comes adult Fiona to tell how she was sent to the tower by her parents. Fiona's part is quite short but works better now, on Broadway it was done differently and not so clearly. Eventually the books close and the bookshelf set piece is pulled up to reveal Shrek's swamp and he sings the more rock-flavored part of the song on full stage.
* The magic mirror is now gone, the Gingerbread Man tells Lord Farquaad about Fiona.
* The dragon is different than it was on Broadway. Now we see the full dragon, with flapping wings and all. Four guys is needed to handle it. One woman gives voice to the dragon instead of a women's ensemble. The song "Donkey Pot Pie" is gone, sadly, and has been replaced by "Forever" which is not even nearly as good as "DPP".
* Sets are different in many places than what they were in the Broadway production, they're not as technical as they were on Broadway. Fiona's tower is not a 3-dimensional tower they can walk around of, but a traditional flat, "cut-out" set piece. The changes of Fiona during "I know it's today" are done with moving cloud set pieces on stage. "Travel song" is done pretty much like it was on Broadway, but now they have the hanging bridge rising from the floor which is a nice effect. The escape from the dragon castle (during/after "This is how a dream comes true") is now shorter. Lord Farquaad's "The Ballad of Farquaad" has a different set now.
* The dragon's appearance in the wedding scene is totally different now. Instead of crashing her head in from the church window the dragon flies in from the auditorium ceiling.
* They do have "I'm a believer" in the end, which I thought was unnecessary. The show should end with "This is our story". I know they added it to the Broadway production, but they shouldn't have done it even there, it just doesn't fit.
The actors were mostly great. I saw Dean Chisnall, an understudy, as Shrek and he was excellent! Wonderful voice! Richard Blackwood was great Donkey, although I thought he hurried with some of his lines. Nigel Harman was brilliant as Lord Farquaad - in a lot of ways I liked him even more than Christopher Sieber on Broadway! Amanda Holden (the woman judge of Britain's Got Talent when Susan Boyle was there) played Fiona, and I have to say I wasn't impressed. Clearly pregnant, she just didn't seem to be very interested in playing the role. It was like she was holding back or something.
There were a lot of kids in the audience that night and they just loved it. So did the adults! It's a fun show.