Shrek the Musical tackles the story of the hit movie from 2001, but adds a creative twist of song and dance. This musical appeared as an original Broadway production in 2008 and has since then been on several tours throughout the world. Besides the musical’s renowned name across the world, the musical has also received much praise and numerous nominations and awards. Among the awards received for Shrek the Musical are a Tony Award for Best Costume Design and a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design. After learning of the success of Shrek the Musical in big-name productions, on March 12, 2017, I attended the Sumter Players’ version of Shrek the Musical at the Rylander Theater in Americus, Georgia. Before seeing the play, I initially held…show more content… In particular, the sound and props of the production take away some enjoyment. During the play, there are several instances when the sound is either too loud or not loud enough. For example, when McNear sings “Don’t Let Me Go” as Donkey, the background music is overpowering. As a result, the music muffles McNear’s lyrics and the words become difficult to hear. Not only does this occur in “Don’t Let Me Go,” but also in numerous other situations, such as when Lean Anglin, who plays the role of Gingy, speaks in the first act. Because Gingy is only a puppet, Anglin hides behind a prop to move Gingy’s mouth as Anglin plays the part. Due to this, Anglin’s lines as Gingy are challenging to hear. Moreover, many of the props in the play also create a negative because they either do not flow well or are not done well. To illustrate, for the role of Dragon, the Sumter Players use a prop along with a separate person, Elizabeth Drennan. The prop is a large dragon that maneuvers by five operators, who dress in black, but still have a visible face. When the dragon prop and Drennan first appear on stage, the connection between the two is tough to establish because the prop does not attach to Drennan and the two are not right next to each other on stage. As a result, the role of Dragon can easily confuse the audience. Similarly, the role of Gingy as a prop is also irritating. Though Anglin hides her face when first speaking as Gingy, towards the end of the musical, Anglin plays the role of Gingy openly. Rather than hiding, Anglin reveals her role as Gingy by holding the puppet and speaking clearly for the audience. Because of this, Anglin’s role as Gingy is less believable. Thus, due to these downfalls, Shrek the Musical is not as enjoyable as the play may have been
