SHREK - first preview thoughts

[dshnookie]

Posted: 11/8/08 at 11:19pm

Forgive me, as I never write reviews for anything. I am not sure how rough first previews usually tend to be, but this production seemed frozen and ready for critics. It was an impeccable night of theater, not a single missed cue, flubbed line, nothing. I have never seen a funnier production, and it ranks as a solid contender for one of the most visually appealing productions as well - I'm fairly new to theater, but in the few months that Ive been here (since July) I've seen well over 40 different productions and this ranks pretty high. I will say its far better than any of the Disney productions.

Brian d'Arcy James plays Shrek very much like Mike Myers does, and the same can be said for Daniel Breaker as Donkey. At first this kind of bugged me but I realize that this is a major brand backed by Dreamworks and we're here to see Shrek and Donkey not Brian and Daniel - does that make any sense? It doesnt make sense to overhaul characters that families already love so in that respect, Brian and Daniel played their roles amazingly well and I heard from audience members that they resembled Mike and Eddie from the film very very well. Sutton was great as Fiona, didnt see much of her in the first act. I felt like she played Fiona a little too sweet for me in the beginning, and lacked a bit of sass that we're used to from Fiona but she really sassed it up in the second act and she was just as great as Brian and Daniel. Many may say that Daniel is the show stealer, but it really goes to Christopher Sieber as Lord Farquad - this man had the audience in stitches, and by the audience I mean the adults. They were uncontrollable - even in his little nuances (like pulling down his shirt as if it were a skirt) were not missed by the audience. Although one of the shortest characters, certainly one of the most entertaining to watch.

The songs were all really strong, I couldnt pick out a throwaway if you ask me (maybe the number with Fiona and the mice - although it made for a very nice tap number), nor could I pick out one that really stood out. I guess that might sound like a complaint, but really it was all just pretty seamless. I think the decision to make Dragon an ensemble piece was an excellent idea SPOILER Dragon is now this large dragon head and neck that moves its mouth and blinks its eyes, while its scales comprise the ensemble. Think of the scale coming out of the stage and in those scales were the ensemble, so each represented one of the scales and they would sing and move about. It really worked and I felt it was very well done. Sets were very nice, Lord F's castle stood out, the scene with Shrek and Fiona at the campfire if you will was very nice.

My ONLY complaint was the seat. If you do lotto BEWARE. I got ROW B seat 6 and it was terrible. I couldnt see anything over the stage, it was very very high and a lot occurs upstage. Think Hairspray if you will, and there's the orchestra pit in the stage, so a lot happened behind that and it made for a lot to be missed if you sit there. Rarely, did characters come forward and walked in front of the pit. Worse than Gypsy - and at least Gypsy is played toward the front with the orch in the back. After the first song, I walked out talked to the manager who informed me it was completely sold out so there were no more seats, but as I walked out there were a good handful on the extreme sides of the orch so I moved from ORCH B to ORCH J extreme side and saw the show completely well from there. With lotto giving out 16 seats, and only 8 seats comprise the front row sides - you may want to pick up your tickets as late as possible if you want to do lotto to snag one of the box seats (assuming that those are the ones they give out if you go towards the end of the pick up time).

There was a moment where Shrek pulls out this skeleton with a helmet and the helmet falls right into the seat that I moved from, and Brian instructs Jordangirl! who was next to me to "Give it to me" and she does, and the audience eats it up and Daniel looks at her like who are you? and Brian says "who the hell was that?" It was priceless - and I saw Brian give both Jordangirl and her friend high fives after curtain call.

All I can say is feel free to catch the show now, it is in excellent excellent shape as is, doubt there'll be many changes but if there are I hope they're for the better and it's definitely a show not just for kids, or families but really everyone. It's got a lot of the humor that is Shrek which is a little crude and inappropriate but it's fun.

Gingerbread cookie was really great too, and the girl who does its voice can definitely give Riff-Tina a run for her money!
Updated On: 11/9/08 at 11:19 PM

[Corine2]

Posted: 11/8/08 at 11:28pm

What a great cast. I can't wait to see Jennifer Simard, John Tart and Jen Cody!
Updated On: 11/8/08 at 11:28 PM

[mywonderwa11]

Posted: 11/8/08 at 11:37pm

Did the lottery seats just completely ruin the show for you or was it just annoying?

When I did SR for A Tale of Two Cities I was front row center and there are a few scenes that happen on the second level of the scaffolding, so I completely missed those scenes because they were literally happening directly above me. Was it anything like that? Or just obstructed views?

How was John Tartaglia as Pinocchio? And what is Donkey's costume like? I've never read or seen anything about it.

[BustopherPhantom]

Posted: 11/8/08 at 11:39pm

I don't agree with the thought that "if an actor is playing Shrek, he should play the Shrek everyone knows." If that's true, then what incentive is there for ANY actor to play that role, if they can't do much with it? It's the same argument someone sitting next to me at AVENUE Q made, that the actors should try to sound like the original cast (although her argument was that, a la SESEME STREET, puppets always sound the same).

The dragon sounds... AWESOME.

Updated On: 11/8/08 at 11:39 PM

[Josh Freilich]

Posted: 11/8/08 at 11:47pm

Okay... I'm asking this silly question again...
Does anyone have the orchestra members in their playbills? If so, could you give me their names and instruments -- I don't mean to pester, but I usually like to ask that question?

[dshnookie]

Posted: 11/8/08 at 11:51pm

mywonderwa11, it was literally me sitting down at 5'9 and looking straight ahead and just seeing nothing but stage, it was just too high to see anything. In the first number, there's a young Shrek and his parents are sending him off and shrek was cut off at the neck, and parents were cut off at the mid-torso, when they ran further back it was just floating heads, then some ensemble members came out as villagers laughing and being scared of shrek - again floating heads. The front row center seems much better, for some reason the side orch seats were pushed further up to the stage than the center ones, and at the center the stage is lower - for some reason the stage grows on a slant where the theater aisles are and grows a good 6 inches from the most center point. think of it as --\_______/--. I was very annoyed. I've also done SR for ATOTC and thought that view is much better than Shrek's lotto. Even people in the 2nd and 3rd rows were jumping up during certain scenes because even they couldnt see. Again, Im not sure how bad it is for the rest of the show since I moved after the first song but I would really advise against it.

BustopherPhantom, I agree and was expecting a different interpretation of Shrek but I was pleased with what I saw and I'm not sure if Brian decided to play it a lot like Myers or if he wasnt allowed many liberties from the producers etc. Yes, the Dragon is awesome and I could hear people saying how cool it was after it made its appearance - it's in the show for about 3 scenes though.

John Tartaglia was great (also the Dragon Puppeteer and Magic Mirror), the nose growth was also very well done - it was cute. The Pinocchio voice was also very good and resembled the voice in the film, though not as annoying luckily. Again, those minor characters are really only in two scenes, in their own songs at least, but Pinocchio is only in the first act for one song, and then for another in the second act and makes another appearance in the finale. I wish I would've seen more of them, especially because all of the costumes were really great in particular for these minor characters.

Donkey's costume, is a full on furry gray suit - think shag carpet if you will. Think of pajamas with feet - two hooves on the hands, with a fitted fur hood over the head and 2 ears sticking out with a stretch of donkey hair running down the spine and a medium length tale. A little bit of white/grey make up on the forehead, nose and cheeks but really the only exposed portion of donkey was his face, nothing else.

Updated On: 11/8/08 at 11:51 PM

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 11/8/08 at 11:54pm

no one can give riff-tina a run for her money.

but haven is back...

HAVEN BURTON (Sugar Plum Fairy, Gingy, u/s for Fiona & Teen Fiona) feels like the luckiest cookie in the whole world. She ran all the way from a far away land called Los Angeles to Broadway, where you may have seen her in Rent or most recently in Legally Blonde opposite a Chihuahua. Cookie kisses to family, agents, God. For Gwammy.

[BustopherPhantom]

Posted: 11/8/08 at 11:55pm

If Daniel Breaker is also, as Chester Gregory II did, playing Donkey as Eddie Murphy's Donkey, than I think the actors were probably directed to do so.

[dshnookie]

Posted: 11/8/08 at 11:57pm

I had no idea that was Haven. I'd pay to see a riff showdown with Riff-Tina - and I'm glad she gets to show off her chops in this if only for a few seconds. I hate when performers with such talent are under utilized in shows (Haven in Legally Blonde, and a few others I can name)

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:01am

Was the theater crowded?

[mywonderwa11]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:05am

Are the lottery tickets only on the side orch front row?

Does Fiona cause the bird to explode?

I'm trying the lottery on Monday, hence all the lottery questions.

[massofmen]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:05am

dshnookie,
did you like legally blonde?

[withoutyou08]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:08am

concertmaster: antoine sliverman
violins: jonathan dinklage, entcho todorov, sean carney
cellos: jeanne leblanc, anja wood,
acoustic bass: bill ellison
flutes: anders bostrom
reeds: charles pillow, jack bashkowm,ron jannelli
trumpets: anthony kadleck, bud burridge
trombones: bruce eidem, morris kaninuma
french horn: adam krauthamer
keyboards: john deley, jason de bord
guitars: ken brescia, bob baxmeyer
electric bass: luico hopper
drums: warren odze
percussion: shane shanahan

there ya go :]

and yes the theater seemed pretty packed to me and i sat in the last row of the mezzanine : and it looked packed to the max.

i thought the show was great especially for the first preview no mess ups or anything like dshnookie said i loved it and yes lord farquad was freaking hilarious! i loved him so funny!

[dshnookie]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:09am

From what I understand, there are 16 tickets. the side orch front row is 4 seats on each side, so there's 8 tickets, maybe the other 8 are in the boxes as I read somewhere else, but couldnt tell you with any certainty.

Fiona does cause the bird to explode, in a burst of blue feathers - very funny.

Wickedrocks, theater was very crowded in the orch, and from what I could see front/rear mezz as well. The lotto guy did make a point of saying there were very few tickets left for tonight's show if people didnt win the lotto, and again the house manager did tell me it was "all sold out"

massofmen, I liked LB very much - saw it 4x. Haven was good in LB, but wasnt able to showcase her vocal talent in the role of Margot which is what I meant by being under utilized.

[Amneris]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:12am

do you possibly know who was on as Young Fiona tonight and if you know the exact rotation of the young fiona's from your playbill? A bunch of us did a show with Leah Greenhaus and are planning a trip to go and see her when she goes on. thanks

[Josh Freilich]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:16am

concertmaster: antoine sliverman
violins: jonathan dinklage, entcho todorov, sean carney
cellos: jeanne leblanc, anja wood,
acoustic bass: bill ellison
flutes: anders bostrom
reeds: charles pillow, jack bashkow, ron jannelli
trumpets: anthony kadleck, bud burridge
trombones: bruce eidem, morris kaninuma
french horn: adam krauthamer
keyboards: john deley, jason de bord
guitars: ken brescia, bob baxmeyer
electric bass: luico hopper
drums: warren odze
percussion: shane shanahan

Whoa, it's weird how many musicians got transferred from other productions, like Antoine got switched from South Pacific and Tony Kadleck got moved from Gypsy.

[dshnookie]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:17am

Leah Greenhaus was the one on tonight! There was a slip in the playbill announcing it. For the two young Fiona's all it says in the playbill (at certain performances only) next to each of their names - no rotation mentioned. The entire cast is listed in alphabetical order.

[withoutyou08]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:17am

tonight young fiona was leah she was good...i dont think it says anything about the rotation..next to both of their names it says (certain performances only)

[mywonderwa11]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:17am

LAST question!!!

When you took your voucher to the box office to purchase your ticket you had no say in what lottery seats you got? You couldn't choose? Because I know I've gotten to choose with SR before and they let me choose an aisle seat at In The Heights.

Lottery questions are over :)

[dshnookie]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:24am

I didnt bother to ask, I was second to pick up my tickets so I assumed I'd be getting the second best possible seat. If you win lotto, I would go and be the first person there and give it a shot and ask, and if they say no - then I would go back closer to noon and pick up some of the final tickets so you arent in the first set of 8.

[jordangirl]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:31am

I've just gotten in from it. I was absolutely and thoroughly charmed (and this from someone who has yet to see the movie). Is it perfect? No. But I found it utterly charming. :) I will definitely go back!

As for the helmet, yeah, it landed on my friend's lap and bounced over to me. One of those never forget moments. Daniel and Brian both checked to make sure we weren't hurt at the stage door. And yeah, we got "Shrek fives!" as Brian exited the stage. The hand is very squishy! :)

*edit* From what I gathered from especially Daniel's comments at the stage door, the helmet is not supposed to fall. It was a new thing, so the lines and looks were absolutely improvised.

Updated On: 11/9/08 at 12:31 AM

[DavidPatrickS82]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:37am

Hello, I was at the first preview tonight as well. As far as lottery seats... tahts why they are lottery... Cause no one is going to pay 121.50 for seats they can't see in.

Anyway... My biggest thing about tonight? Why was there no individual curtain call? It was a company bow. If thats the case then why blow up the headshots of the main characters? Loved the show though. I saw bootleg vids of "morning person" from seattle. All I can say is it's gotten bigger and crazier and it's fabulous. It needs some slight fine tuning, but all will be well for opening night. Just knowing what I know about Ben Brantley though... he'll hate it. The man needs a little sunshine in his life, but I still don't think he'll like this. Too bad, cause it rocks...

[jordangirl]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:39am

Do we know Brantley will review?

[DavidPatrickS82]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:40am

Well... No one KNOWS, but since it's a highly anticipated production the chances are extremely high!

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 11/9/08 at 12:42am

Isherwood only usually covers Off-Broadway transfers...and every now and then a brand new musical but it's very rare. Brantley will certainly review this show.