Review: SHREK THE MUSICAL, Eventim Apollo
Photo credit: Marc Brenner
Sitting in the crowd of Shrek: The Musical at the Eventim Apollo is sitting in an atmospheric, perfectly exaggerated, colourful ball of fairytale energy, watching the word ‘iconic’ flutter around your heads and threaten to land, as we are led through a story of unconditional love, in romance, in friendship and within yourself, with awe-inspiring belting and belching!
Whilst a funny feel is established from the start and vocal performances are immediately impressive, the style of the production takes a little time, practically minuscule, to settle into as first impression of simple effects and an underwhelming use of the stage quickly fade from memory, replaced by the dynamic, camp theatricality of bringing a big pop cultural moment to the context of a musical theatre arena, with a clever set design by Philip Witcomb to reflect that modern quality, at times using cinematic visual effects and just enough to keep the fourth wall truly open exactly as is needed.
The stage is brought to life by big characters of wonderfully imaginative characteristics and utterly incredible voice work. Voices project and ring beautifully in song, perhaps losing some diction in places in dialogue, however, bringing to the table the skilfully controlled live voice acting and puppetry of Tamara Tare playing Gingy, Elf and more, beyond worthy of the story’s original animation format, and the expert timing of leading cast members to achieve maximum impact of brilliant sound and video design by Ben Harrison and Nina Dunn. As they add bodies, you are immersed, fully and effectively, into their world, by costumes of admirable attention to detail, also by Philip Witcomb, and uniquely synchronised, animated body language.
The show dedicates a pleasing level of energy to the building of the atmosphere and the plot, with just enough expositional dialogue to feed a subtle pantomime feel and a swelling mood and dreamy aura that surrounds and envelops you. Through the constant ups and downs of this emotional and narrative rollercoaster, silliness mixed with the kind of talent this cast of scene stealers and thieves of breath is a magical combination.
Every member of the cast stands out with shining performances. An exceptional variety of genres of dance and music is explored, adding clever distinctions of contrasts and compatibility and making for an all-around sparkling experience, from perfectly placed choreography to guards with fluid movements to die for and clearly reminiscent of classic musical theatre on multiple occasions as gifted harmonies and dance breaks show off the talent of the cast featuring the celebrated steps of a Strictly Come Dancing dancer and champion.
Joanne Clifton, playing Princess Fiona, is introduced in a number that immediately conjures goosebumps. With this role, she continues her aptitude for the unfiltered, outspoken female characters of musical theatre and delivers an expressive yet casual performance, allowing her to connect with the audience flawlessly. Clifton’s vocal is already perfectly suited to the stage, but this production holds a new level of satisfaction of the same feeling of putting in the final piece of a jigsaw puzzle and feeling it flatten flush, perhaps in part to the one-upping new addition of a brief exploration with slapstick comedy. Overall, Clifton’s Fiona, portrayed with wonderful humour and musicality, comes across a driving force of the freedom that becomes a defining, if not the defining theme of the show.
Lord Farquaad, played by the originator of the role for UK tour audiences, James Gillan, lends a beautiful clear crisp vocal and sassy, confident attitude to the stage with ease. Gillan manages to play self-centred in such a giving way, exhibiting ideal chemistry with all of his scene partners and the audience alike. The one-of-a-kind character that he is, an antagonist who wins over the crowd at a distance, a threat, but a welcome one, Farquaad requires an exceptionally balanced performance and Gillan succeeds absolutely in this, exuding fun and drama throughout.
An experienced actor in the lane of attracting young audiences to theatre, Antony Lawrence, in his striking portrayal of Shrek, brings a lovely depth to the character, namely in an underlying wholesomeness. Put simply, just like an onion, the more layers you pull back the more likely you are to want to cry. Working hand in hand, from strength to strength, with intricate technical and practical effects, Lawrence balances brilliantly his character, who just wants to be left alone in his swamp, and his creative position in the production, bringing everyone together to lead them through this fanciful tale.
Modern comedy comes to the stage straight from the Donkey’s mouth, played by the sensational Todrick Hall. It is truly special to see him grace London with his epic talent. Hall is a natural performer to his core, filling an empty stage brilliantly with big energy and character commitment. He takes to the stage to resounding cheers of recognition and excitement from the crowd and gives the exact same enthusiasm, plus some, right back, his vocal shining bright with an amazing raspy quality and soulful power.
It’s amazing how Clifton and Hall perform so well with all of the crowds, dancers and theatre kids in the palms of their respective hands!
Now, a shout out to Natasha Cayabyab, who proves herself to be an absolute star of a performer just one year after her graduation, as she returns to Shrek: The Musical lending incredible skill and style to a variety of characters with their own unique demands, encouraging the audience to enjoy every second and find the joy of theatre even in the faces we don’t yet know well. Impressed is an understatement.
This production does not go too far in any direction; its clearly for kids, for adults, for fans of the movie, for dancers, for singers, for all of us alike, you don’t even really have to have a familiarity with the Shrek film franchise to enjoy the show as the cast builds humour from ridiculousness and brutal honesty, and brings us physical comedy, classic movie moments, mind-blowing plot points and relatability. References to worlds and realities we travelled to as children come back to us like old friends and materialise for the first time before those who have just met them.
After choruses of laughter, shivers down spines and fawning from the crowd, to the point where a hug gets a monstrous cheer and even introductions to songs bring a smile to your face, it is clear this production has taken the story to another level and achieved in driving home a greater, deeper meaning, culminating in a sweet proclamation of a wholesome tender love and a heartwarming, thought-provoking conclusion to send us back into the real world feeling warm and free ourselves.
**** Four stars
Reviewed by: Louisa Clarke
Shrek the Musical plays at London’s Eventim Apollo until 31 August, with tickets available here.
