Theatre Review: Shrek The Musical at The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham

AD: This Press Night Review refers to the 2024 Touring Production of Shrek The Musical at the Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham*

Everyone’s favourite ogre is back! Touring until August 2024, the Broadway and West End hit based on the Dreamworks film brings this Big Bright Beautiful story to the Alexandra Theatre stage.

Ogres are like onions

A reluctant Shrek sets out on a quest to defeat a fearsome dragon and rescue the feisty Princess Fiona. It’s the only way he can reclaim his stinky swamp from the banished fairytale characters that have taken refuge. He makes a deal with the evil Lord Farquaad, who wants the princess’s hand in marriage. Alongside him is a trusty – but unhinged – sidekick Donkey. Naturally, Shrek learns valuable lessons about friendship and acceptance along the way.

The set design by Philip Whitcomb is cracking, and is faithful to the original animation style. We move from Shrek’s swamp to Fiona’s bedroom to Lord Farquaad’s kingdom and the dragon’s lair seamlessly. The clever use of video projections (Nina Dunn) and beautiful lighting (Ben Cracknell) allow scenes to flow perfectly and immerse us in the fairytale world of Duloc.

Shrek the Musical is bursting with energy and feel-good vibes and has one of the most exuberant curtain calls I’ve seen on the Alex stage for a while. The production is perfectly executed by a talented cast and crew. There’s a large cast, who at times fill the entirety of the stage and the exceptional ensemble take on multiple roles. Many iconic lines from the film make it into this production (“Have YOU seen the Muffin Man?”/”Not my gumdrop buttons!”) largely thanks to Georgie Buckland’s Gingy.

Antony Lawrence dons the green bodypaint and (mostly) Scottish burr as Shrek. He puts in a fab performance, showing a gentle side to the grumpy ogre. We get a snippet of backstory, introducing us to a 7 year old Shrek shunned by society and even his own parents. Brandon Lee Sears steps into the Donkey suit and completely nails it. He’s chaotic, annoying and hilarious to watch. I immediately recognised his amazing vocal range from his performance as Jimmy Early in Dreamgirls.

For me, the weak link was the decision to create a flamboyant Lord Farquaad. With John Lithgow’s menacing film performance in mind, this character 360 really didn’t work for me. James Gillan does put in a sterling shift as the diminutive dictator though, with impressively shiny hair.

That’ll do Donkey

The imposing dragon is beautifully brought to life by a mixture of puppetry and the talent of Cherece Richards, who stuns the audience with powerhouse vocals on “Forever”. There are definite shades of “And I’m Telling You” at the climax of the number. Joanne Clifton (aka “Strictly Come Dancing’s Joanne Clifton”) is always a true professional with gorgeous moves and excellent comedic timing; her Princess Fiona teeters on a knife edge between elegant and crude. Her “Morning Person” number is a crowd-pleaser, especially with the introduction of a chorus of tap-dancing rats.

This production has clearly been created with children in mind. The younger members of the audience seemed to thoroughly enjoy the endless fart and burp jokes. The few attempts at more mature humour didn’t quite have the sophistication of those seen at Peter Pan Goes Wrong a few weeks before. Sadly the original songs aren’t particularly memorable, and probably won’t have me adding the soundtrack to my playlist.

Are you a believer? It’s heart-warming and funny and I’m very pleased that they all lived happily ever after.

Shrek the Musical is at the Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham until Sunday 14th April 2024. Purchase your tickets here. The tour continues until August 2024, please see the ‘Shrek UK Tour’ website for full details and ticket information

Production images by Marc Brenner

*Why is this post marked AD? I was invited to attend Press Night in exchange for an honest review. You can trust that I will always be honest and truthful on A Brummie Home and Abroad, and being an invited guest will not influence my opinion in any way.