By this point in the world’s history, one might think twice before offending an artist. Such jilted, disgruntled, or abused individuals have a natural medium for revenge through their work. Let’s look at a case study: 

In the early 1990’s, Disney was the undisputed animated movie juggernaut. When the position as head of the company opened up, Jeffery Katzenberg expected that promotion. Instead, the board chose Michael Eisner. Conflict ensued and Katzenberg separated from Disney and won a 250 million dollar lawsuit against the company. Katzenberg took his money and presented a business proposition to Steven Spielberg. This resulted in the creation of Dreamworks Animation Studios (whichever Disney lawyers failed to include a non-compete clause in their settlement were probably fed to the Jungle Cruise hippopotami). 

Dreamworks’ first movie was “Antz”, which aimed to steal the thunder from Pixar’s “A Bug’s Life,” a film Katzenberg may have known about prior to his departure. As the studio enjoyed moderate success with “The Prince of Egypt,” “The Road to El Dorado,” and “Chicken Run,” Katzenberg decided on a bold stroke of revenge. He would create a rude, childish, satirical send up of the traditional Disney formula with the main villain, Lord Farquaad, being a clear caricature of Michael Eisner. Thus, Shrek was born. 

Audiences loved it. Shrek solidified Dreamworks as a major player in the animated movie industry and as a studio more adept and open to various forms of comedy than Disney’s predictable approach. 

In the continual battle of “anything you can do, I can do better,” Dreamworks followed Disney to Broadway with their musical adaptation of Shrek. It was one of the most expensive musicals to produce, costing 25 million. It was nominated for seven Tony awards, winning best costume design. Critics gave it positive reviews, but it failed to make back the initial investment. 

Which brings us to this evening: watching Shrek the Musical at the State Theater in Easton, Pennsylvania. This is the fourth time we have seen this musical. Once off-Broadway, one professional release of the musical on blu-ray, and one high school production.

Tonight’s performance impressed on so many levels. 

First and foremost were the harmonies of the cast. Their voices matched incredibly well and they were locked in so well I wondered at one point in the show if they were using auto-tune. They sounded best when they were singing in parts. Perhaps they were cast for their capacities to match. 

Second, their physical comedy, facial expressions, and dancing out-shone many Broadway performances I have watched lately. They were as synchronized as national-champion-cheer-squads. Their collective acting enhanced the show far more than expected; they really went for it and gave it their all. 

Third, tonight’s performance had understudies in the roles of Fiona and the Sugar Plum Fairy/Gingy. Kelly Prendergast stepped in as Fiona and Ally Choe filled in the other spots. They did not miss a beat or a note. If I had not known they were the understudies, I would have expected they had been cast in those roles. 

Fourth, Lord Farquaad stole the show. We could not get enough of Timmy Lewis. One slight critique of the performance was that some of the cast struggled with rushing  comedic timing of their lines (perhaps a directorial choice?) Yet, this was never the case with Mr. Lewis, much like Jonathan Groff as King George in Hamilton, we wanted more of him on stage. He brought the best laughs.

Fifth, a shout out to the State Theater tech crew and those working in the live band which nailed the mix and sound. It was Baby Bear level “just right” in volume and singer mixes. 

Tonight’s performance omitted a few of the original Broadway songs: Don’t Let Me Go, This Is How a Dream Comes True, The Ballad of Farquaad, Build a Wall, and (a family favorite) Donkey Pot Pie. Yet, only the last was a real loss.

I appreciated how they made this show more family friendly than the original with many of the more risqué jokes in the original omitted. Children and adults of all ages that enjoyed the movie would easily enjoy this musical.

One can always count on an excellent night out when attending a performance at the State Theatre in Easton. Be sure to check their upcoming calendar for all the great entertainment scheduled for the upcoming season.

_{*we were invited to facilitate a feature, all opinions are our own*}