Any SHREK news from last night?- Page 3

[HBP]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 12:59am

If anyone else is going in the next few nights, could someone take curtain call pictures? I'm pretty sure those are OK without flash, then we can see the costumes... Thanks!

[Raspberry]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 1:30am

Us on the East Coast have to wait 2 hours for it to start. Then 3 more hours for it to end. Will the reviews be out tonight or tomorrow?

If you're going to wait up for the reviews, you'll be awake for quite a while. This is just the first preview performance for the pre-Broadway tryout. The official Seattle opening isn't until September 10. :o)

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 2:51am

Okay, just got back. So here goes: Shrek the Musical.

It was the first public performance so I'll refrain from any real critical analysis.

The tourists will love this show. Discerning theatre snobs won't but heck it's Shrek the Musical. What did you expect?

It's too long. There were a lot of kids in the audience and three hours is way too long for a kid's show. (Although tonight's audience was pretty well behaved despite the very long running time) The second act is stronger than the first. The songs are better and the parts taken directly from the movie fit better than in the first where it isn't so seamless. The first half of the first act is kind boring but things pick up with the song "Things Are Looking Up in Duloc." I'll type up the song list later. The rest of the act is much better but they definitely could work on the first half.

The Sets:
Pretty cool. Not spectacular but boy there are a lots of set changes! I'm not sure they made any scene look the same. I kept thinking there's more? Where do they fit all that?

The Costumes:
I was sitting pretty far away but most of the costumes looked great. I didn't love the costumes for the fairy tale creatures and Donkey looked like a crappy bunny halloween costume that they spray-painted grey and pinned a donkey tail on.

Farquad was a played by a man on his knees with little stuffed legs which at first was awkward but it got better when they played with it a little bit.

The Dragon.....really annoyed me. It looked great when they revealed her but then you see that the dragon is really just a big parade float and the real dragon is a lady wearing a hideous dress followed around by a several more girls in hideous dresses. It could have worked but they made the women too separate from the parade float dragon. The dragon is on one side of the stage while the dragon lady is on the other. huh? Aren't they supposed to be one creature? And the dragon float doesn't show up in the show again after that first scene. It's just the lady in the awful dress. It really didn't work for me.

The performances were good with the exception of the fairy tale creatures whose joke often fall flat and frankly they could be annoying.


I think the show will be pretty successful even if it get mixed reviews from the New York critics (I can see a few critics disliking a show with no fewer than three fart jokes and even a little farting burping song thing.)
Well that's a lot more than I thought I was going to write. If anyone has any questions I'd be happy to answer 'em.


Updated On: 8/15/08 at 02:51 AM

[defyingravity07]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 2:56am

Fiona's transformation please!!

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:01am

No spectacular change. She walks off-stage for at least a minute and comes back transformed.

They also have a bit earlier in the show (the morning after the second night for those who are familiar with the plot) where they show ogre-Fiona walking in the woods just before the sun rises and she goes behind a tree and out from the other side comes Sutton Foster as human Fiona. (The ogre-Fiona was a different actress in that part)

Updated On: 8/15/08 at 03:01 AM

[skb2010]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:04am

How was the acting/singing? (dumb question, I know)

And I'm sure they will cut stuff, change stuff, make it better. Its the preview for a preview (or thats what I got from a previous thread.)

I wish I could see this.


EDIT: And thanks for the review.

Updated On: 8/15/08 at 03:04 AM

[defyingravity07]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:08am

So Sutton was never the ogor? Was the make up as nice a Shrek's? Could you see Brian's expressions from the prosthetics? Was Pinocchio a puppet? What about Donkey's costume?
Updated On: 8/15/08 at 03:08 AM

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:13am

Pinnochio is a real man (haha) and his costume looked great.

The gingerbread man was a puppet.

Sutton was an ogre at the end. She had plenty of time to change during the wedding scene. They just play a little trick a few scenes earlier but it isn't very well executed. The ogre-Fiona walks behind a tree upstage and Sutton comes out of a different tree farther downstage.

Acting and singing good for the most part. The fairy tale creatures performances were a little uneven but I think poor writing for them is to blame. Hope they punch up some of their stuff.

Also there were a few references to other shows.....A Chorus Line (sort of), Wicked and the Lion King were the ones I caught.


Here's the song List:

Act 1

Big Bright Beautiful World
I Could Get Used To This
The Line-Up
The Line-Up Reprise #1
The Goodbye Song
I Know It's Today
Things Are Looking Up in Duloc
Travel Song
Donkey Pot Pie
This Is How Dreams Come True
The Line-Up Reprise #2
Who I'd Be


Act 2
Morning Person
I Think I Got You Beat
The Ballad of Farquaad
Let Her In
Gonna Build a Wall
Freak Flag
More to the Story
Wedding Procession
The Wedding
Finale

Updated On: 8/15/08 at 03:13 AM

[skb2010]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:16am

Playbill?


Haha. We ask so much of you


PS: Your "signature" thing. i less than 3 it.

[defyingravity07]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:17am

What about Donkey's costume?

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:20am

Uh, I guess I'm not sure what you're asking but they had a standard 5th ave theatre program (for those unfamiliar...and I'm sure that will be most of you it's bigger than a playbill)

It's got the logo with the big "s" that says Shrek the musical world premiere.

[defyingravity07]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:22am

Are you avoiding Donkey's costume?

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:24am

I thought Donkey's costume was lame. It looked like a cheap halloween costume. (see my description above of the bunny costume painted gray)

He walked upright and had hooves on his hand and what looked like black workboots on his feet and a little gray vest. Maybe they're still working on the costume. I hope so because it looks pretty lame next to Shrek's costume.
Updated On: 8/15/08 at 03:24 AM

[skb2010]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:25am

Do you have pictures of it[the it being the playbill]? (I am the epitome of lame, sorry.)

Updated On: 8/15/08 at 03:25 AM

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:26am

Nope. Sorry. But seriously I hope they work on his costume.

[skb2010]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:27am

The playbill. Not the costume. I had to edit my post.



meh..


and this is completely relevant

Updated On: 8/15/08 at 03:27 AM

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:33am

Not very exciting but here ya go:

[skb2010]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:37am

Gracias.

My life is better now.

A. Because it's 2:36, and I can now go to bed with this review in mind.

and B.
Because I decided "pieces of flair" on facebook is the greatest application. Ever.

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:40am

No problem. It's bedtime for me too.

And yes, the flair application is awesome


Updated On: 8/15/08 at 03:40 AM

[andrewcomp]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:41am

Who'd Haven play?

[skb2010]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:41am

I swear, at least one button per page has a reference to a musical or this site (without meaning to.)

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 3:43am

Okay, one more.

Haven Burton played the Sugar Plum Fairy (with an odd deep-voiced Russian accent) and Gingy.



ETA...huh..I didn't actually look at the program when I was in the theatre. I had no idea that John Tartaglia played Pinocchio. Hard to see faces from the balcony. Updated On: 8/15/08 at 03:43 AM

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 4:04am

"Because I decided "pieces of flair" on facebook is the greatest application. Ever."

Personally, I prefer the bumper sticker one.

And yes, John Tartaglia is Pinocchio!

Who played the GingerBread "Not the Buttons" Man?

[RacerX]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 4:37am

Ummm can I just play devil's advocate and point out that you don't even know the cast? I find it incredibly difficult to take your review to heart when you don't even know that Chris Sieber plays Lord Farquaad. Sieber is a TONY nominee and has been in a ton of Broadway shows. You didn't even mention Brian in your review who, since you probably don't know, played Shrek who is the lead- he played the ogre.

I saw the invited dress two nights ago and for the most part was very impressed. It's long, but come on the show doesn't open until December 12th (or something like that)on Broadway. It had slow moments but it's months away from the finished product. Just my opinion of course but I think it's going to be more than a tourist show. I think it's got a heart and if you actually know a thing about theatre you'd see this has incredible potential.

I'm not saying it will run forever but after Wednesday's dress I'm excited for it.

[courtnyj]

Posted: 8/15/08 at 4:53am

Wow. No need to be so harsh. It wasn't a real review and I didn't say I thought it was bad. I said I think it's going to be a hit with the tourists and that there will be theatre snobs who will dislike it. And no I didn't pay attention to who was in the entire cast before going. Why the unwarranted meanness?

Updated On: 8/15/08 at 04:53 AM