Mary Pollard — Theater Critic

The musical condenses the series into a 2 hour 20 minute show that serves plenty. It’s extremely polished with a talented cast and some belting voices. Pang and Ryan deliver powerful performances while Stephanie Zaharis as Misa Amane is a pocket rocket, commanding the stage.

The theme of judging people on their appearance is very current, and allows for a couple of the better tunes; Pinocchio’s ‘Story of My Life’ and the chorus’s animated rendition of ‘Freak Flag’. However, even with an excellent live band there’s something lacking at the core of this musical and it has to come down to the songs. Clearly the film is packed with familiar funky and upbeat classics that build huge atmosphere and support the story. Here the songs are largely rather forgettable and samey. I can’t remember one of them postshow and the closing rendition of ‘I’m a Believer’ only serves to remind you what you’ve missed. With so many plus points to the production it’s definitely an entertaining watch. But does it capture the essence of the Shrek we know and love? Perhaps not.