Shrek the Musical At The Kings Theatre, Southsea Review

Reviewed by Lilybean

As a major fan of Shrek the film, I was thrilled to be asked to review “Shrek The Musical” last night at The Kings Theatre, in Southsea. I hadn’t visited the theatre since the pandemic and was quickly reminded of its opulence and beauty as soon as we entered the auditorium. We sat in the circle and enjoyed an excellent view of the stage.

Shrek The Musical is produced by the Portsmouth Players and is based loosely on the film version. With one difference; the music from the film does not feature many times in the theatre show. I must make that distinction early on. However, this fact does not deter one bit from the excellent show that we were lucky enough to witness last night.

For those who aren’t familiar with the storyline of Shrek, the story is focused on our hero Shrek. The scary, supposedly ugly ogre who lives all alone, seemingly happily, in his swamp. His bubble of stench and mud soon bursts however when Lord Farquaad relocates all local fairytale creatures to live in this swamp after they are banished from the Kingdom of Duloc upon the Lords instructions. The unkindly named “freaks” are not welcomed by Shrek into his home and he takes it upon himself to visit Duloc and put a stop to the banishment. Upon doing so he becomes embroiled in an adventure to save the Princess Fiona and unite her with her so called “true love”. Along the way he meets Donkey who he quickly realises is a pain in the “ass”, however the annoyance he feels soon turns to friendship. As with every fairytale story, our story ends with true love, but perhaps not found where we or Princess Fiona might have expected.

Shrek is played by the amazing Jack Edwards. His costume is superb and the gasps from my children when they first saw him on stage were heart warming. He sang with ease and power, guiding the production through the 2 acts with the strength and confidence of a leading actor. He was truly a delight to watch and we all fell in love with him.

His new BFF, the lovable Donkey is played by Tom Wood. I did wonder if the actor could match up to the character in the film, but I needn’t have worried. Donkey soon became a favourite of ours and his lovable, hilarious one-liners had us in stitches from the minute he appeared on the stage.

Princess Fiona is played by the beautiful Lauren Kempton who returns to the Portsmouth Players after 18 years away. She manages to play the role with elegance, precise comedic timing and a grace that is required of our heroine. There is one scene in particular which “blew us away” and I will say no more ;-). Her note-perfect voice set alight each and every scene and was particularly lovely when she was joined by the two younger Fionas.

Our fourth and final lead role is filled by the amazing Nick Williams. Nick is 6ft 4 in height and states he never anticipated playing the pocket-sized Lord Farquaad. He was amazing in this role. Despite spending every minute on stage on his knees, he had such an enormous presence. The audience found themselves laughing in anticipation each time he shuffled out towards the front of the stage. This is his first performance with the Portsmouth Players and as someone who also enjoys working behind the scenes, I hope we shall see him appear in further productions with the Players. He had the audience in the palm of his (apparently) teeny tiny hand and his voice projected with precision. He stole the show and I found myself awaiting his return to the stage front with anticipation.

Usually in theatre productions, the lead roles are the main characters with the ensemble cast taking a back seat. They are often just fillers to what is the main course of the show. With this wonderful production that could not be further from the truth. This ensemble cast, playing the Fairytale creatures were outstanding. Every song was belted out with precision and accuracy and kept us entirely engaged. They kept us entertained with high-energy dance routines, songs and choruses and we couldn’t help but love the “freaks” as wickedly named by Lord Farquaad. My children particularly loved Pinocchio with his extending nose and the Three Little Pigs. But it was hard to choose between them, as they were all so professional and kept the show upbeat and on its toes. I loved the interwoven storyline telling us no-one is a freak and bearing witness to the Fairytale characters rise to glory, taking back their power.

There is a line in the show which states “What makes us special makes us stronger” and I feel this sums up the story of “Shrek The Musical” perfectly. We, as audience members, can also acknowledge this and take it away as our truth, as we go our separate ways. Shrek The Musical certainly is a story full of special people who are strong in their own way. And the land of Duloc is a better place for it.

Rating: 5/5

The Kings Theatre, Southsea
Tuesday 11th to Saturday 15th October 2022
Nightly at 7.30pm, Saturday Matinee at 2.30pm
Tickets start from £18.00 and can be purchased from www.kingsportmouth.co.uk