I know it's a long way to Broadway but Seattle is in a few weeks. I am very interested from the 4 track demo (Which I am addicted to) besides not the best lyrics in some parts.
"I'm a find I'm a catch and a very gifted bowler" (Well I guess the kids will laugh)
But other then that I love the four songs and am interested to here more songs. And any reviews in Seattle.
I especially love the "ba ba ba" Part in Big Bright Beautiful World! I know I'm will most likely be bashed in this thread but I'm giving Shrek The Musical an open mind!
I haven't heard the music, but this production really piques my interest. I want to see how they design it, and I want to watch that amazing cast!
musicalmaster: I'm guessing that tourists will flock to it, the biggest name is SHREK. It doesn't matter who's in the show, at least to start with - the title and the brand are what will sell it.
I really like "The Wall" but it's going to be weird hearing Shrek singing that. It's so like...not the type of song you would expect from something based on the movie. But they're two separate entities.
Chester Gregory sounds awesome in "I Could Get Used to This" and I really like "I Know It's Today". The first song- not so much.
I am very excited for this. Like most I started out sceptical but then went to the shrek spotlight night at 5th avenue theatre (as I live in seattle) and was ready to give it an open mind. Seeing tesori and abaire perform their songs was great and seiber was there as well (and was excellent (he sang a song that has not been released at all yet). I am enjoying the four tracks particularly "I know its Today" but Im a big Sutton fan. I have tickets for the first public performance-August 14th at 5th Avenue theatre in Seattle. I will definately be posting a review that night!
I am so excited as well. I am going the last Saturday night in August. I think it's the 30th. I got my Shrek ears. I haven't heard the demo yet. If anyone has it online, can you pm me? IT would be awesome.
Okay, just listened the demo tracks (thanks BroadwayBoy2!)...
I have made no secret about my disdain of the hiring of Tesori for Shrek. Personally, I think it needs a clever songwriting team, like Lopez and Marx or even Ahrens and Flaherty (I consider them the poor man's Menken/Ashman, which isn't a bad thing considering how talented that team was). David Yazbeck would've been a great choice especially since he had nothing going on when this musical was announced! And it goes to show that my fears were somewhat justified. Tesori delivers successfully on one song, "I Know It's Today", which is actually pretty cute and catchy if you ignore the idiotic climax where Fiona at all three ages sing together. The other three are woefully miswritten.
Why? Because Shrek should be ANTI-Disney musical. Sure, the opening song has the company crooning about how Shrek will never discover happiness, but why is it done so cutely, so seriously almost? This should NOT be a flowing ballad, Tesori! This should maybe START as one, but for the full thing you should've made things a little bouncy and had fun with it. All I hear is an unironic mess that thinks it's clever. The stage choreography will have to be killer to make it work. And Abaire? You're not off the hook either. Except for the lyrics that the creators probably told you to pencil in, none of your stuff is actually funny. I laughed at nothing Donkey said in "I Could Get Used to This". He actually butchered the waffles line, which should've been spoken at the end of a stanza! (unless it's previously located somewhere in a book scene) As I said before, Yazbeck would've made that song work damn well.
And don't get me started on "The Wall". The original movie never gets truly trying for serious until the last twenty minutes, and it's already pushing this "tearjerker"? Gimmie a break. This already has the makings of a gigantic misfire...but somehow I know that just like Legally Blonde I'll be humming one of those four someday, sigh...
If someone could send me the tracks, that would be great.
I am a firm believer in serendipity- all the random pieces coming together in one wonderful moment, when suddenly you see what their purpose was all along.