Author: Joe Clarke

I was delighted to return to the fabulous Brindley Theatre in Runcorn this week, after a very long hiatus, to meet the lovely folk at D&S Productions.  A relatively new society to district 8, D&S productions certainly have a wealth of experience on the musical theatre and amateur scene across the North-West.  Their production of Shrek the Musical was a huge risk, being the first show back at The Brindley since our friend ‘Rona’ made an appearance – but a risk worth taking!  The vast audience were entertained throughout and ended the evening singing and dancing along to I’m a Believer in the aisles!

Directed by Donna Dale, this production was a visual delight!  The set and costumes were simply stunning, as was the lighting design.  Every scene was layered with colour and texture throughout.  A special mention has to go to the team involved with costume and properties for your obvious hard work!

Donna’s direction and vision for this production was great.  The pace was generally very good and scene changes were short and succinct.  If I was to be a little picky, I felt that the show was a little long and felt that some songs and scenes could’ve been cut – but this is just a personal preference.  I appreciated the time spent on characterisation, humour and storytelling from the vast majority of the cast, although there were some ensemble members who looked a little lost and out of place from time to time.  I got a little concerned that Freak Flag was missing from the musical numbers in the programme – but delighted when the cast performed this in the second half!  One of favourite numbers, performed brilliantly!  Overall, a thoroughly entertaining time was had by all.

Craig Price was the musical director for this production.  I have to say – the orchestra were stunning!   From the opening Overture to the final Exit Music, the orchestra played along as if they were having the best time in the pit – under the careful guidance of Craig Price.  My favourite was the brass section who sounded superb!  I loved the harmonies used in whole cast numbers especially, which was a great showcase for this society and their members.

The choreographer for this production was John Sprung-Murphy (who also played Donkey).  I loved the various dance styles that were incorporated into this production such as the tap number (with A Chorus Line reference).  It was also a good showcase for the obvious talent from this society.  It might’ve been nice to have seen a dance troupe from the more capable ensemble members – but not necessary.

As I mentioned before – the lighting design and implementation was excellent!  I loved the gobos and layers used to accentuate the passing of time as well as the layering of scenes (such as the dawn light gobo effect shining through the trees).

The sound, although at times a little loud for some others around me, was great.  The blend between orchestra, actors and audience was excellent and very well implemented throughout.

Production wise – this was an excellent version of this musical and if this is the standard for D&S productions’ future shows then we are in for a treat!

The main cast were made up of Wesley Wharton (Shrek), Kayleigh Ann Strong (Princess Fiona) and John Sprung-Murphy (Donkey).  Both Wharton and Strong’s vocals were superb and gave me chills!  Kayleigh Ann Strong could’ve sung the phone book and got away with it!  Wesley Wharton’s vocals had gravitas and every time he sang, I felt comfortable knowing that we were in safe hands.  John Sprung-Murphy has energy in abundance and gave 100% commitment to this role.  I loved his facial expressions and sense of comic timing – which was superb! He brought a great physical characterisation to this role too. Downsides for me, were slight diction issues form Sprung-Murphy and a lack of secure Scottish accent (when speaking only) from Wharton.  Overall though, all three were very well cast and were very entertaining throughout, particularly the characterisation from Kayleigh Ann Strong!

Young Fiona (Chrisell Kenyon) and Teen Fiona (Skye Marsh) were both brilliant!  I adored the commitment both gave, particularly the energy that Chrisell Kenyon gave to this role!  Skye Marsh’s vocals were stunning, and I look forward to seeing her in future roles!  ‘I Know It’s Today’ was breathtakingly good!

Kriss Hubbard’s Lord Farquaad was suitably camp and suitably bad and entertaining throughout.  I loved Kriss’ comic timing and delivery.  Whilst at times the pace dropped in his scenes, I still enjoyed the characterisations and added dialogue such as (in a Scottish accent – ‘disgusting’)!  A great performance!

I was a little underwhelmed with Hayley Dale’s Dragon.  I felt that her song, whilst sounding beautiful, didn’t have enough gravitas and would’ve been better with some parts in belt, rather than in ‘head voice’.  Saying that, Hayley looked great in her dress and had brilliant sass and stage presence!  I was equally underwhelmed with Matt Weaver’s Pinocchio.  Matt’s vocality with this role meant it was very hard to hear his lines and singing which negatively impacted on comedy and performance.  I did like the physicality he brought to this role though.

Other honourable mentions go to Gemma Walker for her performance as Gingy – a great vocal performance with great comic timing and storytelling!  Latesha Karisa was also a stand-out as the Ugly Duckling/Ensemble.  Her energy on stage was infectious and she also displayed some great vocals too!

There are far too many other characters for me to mention in this review – however, each played their part and positively contributed to the overall production.  ‘Duloc’, ‘Who I’d Be’, ‘I Know It’s Today’, ‘Freak Flag’, ‘Fare Well Thee Ogre’, ‘Big Bright, Beautiful World’ were standout performances.  In fact, there are more but I’d be here all day trying to list my favourites!

Overall, the audiences laughed in all of the right places and a great time was had by all.  I hope that this is the beginning of a new wave of amateur theatre since our friend ‘Rona graced the scene, and hope that D&S productions continue to produce great entertaining theatre such as this.  I thank D&S productions for their kind hospitality and wish them all the very best for their 2022 season!