Ogre musical will make you a believer

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/08/2016 (3549 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s been 15 years since the first Shrek movie came out, but the film has managed to hold onto its audience with a timeless story and slapstick humour.

Now, Winnipeg audiences can see Shrek the Musical live at Rainbow Stage from Aug. 11 to 31, which follows the first film’s story with the addition of 19 songs.

Wolseley actor and director Carson Nattrass will be taking on the role of Shrek himself and says he’s looking forward to getting on stage in full make-up and costume. He recently directed Rainbow Stage’s Cash: Ring of Fire.

“We have a seven-year-old so it’s not hard to do my homework,” Nattrass said. “It’s really lovely to get to work on pieces like this when you have children in your life, and for it to be your own. It’s pretty cool, I’m not going to lie.”

Nattrass said the story follows the first Shrek movie fairly closely, but with over two hours of showtime, the audience also gets to learn more about Lord Farquaad.

“His character is the one that’s really drawn out,” he said. “In the movie he’s sort of the villain you rarely see, but in this case he’s an absolutely delightful character.”

He added that the music adds a new element to the story as well, and helps to underscore what the characters are going through.

“Shrek has all these beautiful songs, and hilarious songs, to really let you know where he’s at emotionally,” Nattrass said. “My bread and butter is generally in musical theatre. I’m trained classically as an actor, not as a singer, but because I can sing I’ve been working in musicals a lot.

“I would say I tend to land character roles that are funnier and supportive roles, as opposed to this where I’m Shrek in Shrek the Musical. That doesn’t happen often, so it’s really exciting for me.”

Nattrass said the movie’s approach to adult humor alongside a children’s fairy tale was somewhat revolutionary in 2001, but there are other reasons the story has stayed so popular.

“If you follow Beauty and the Beast, a handsome prince is cursed to be a beast and then true love will make him handsome again,” Nattrass said. “Then you have a story where Princess Fiona, whose curse turns her into an ogre after sunset and when she finds true love, she finds her true beauty is her ogre self, that’s such a lovely message; that is really still so very relevant today.”

He added that the fairy tale creatures who’ve been exiled from Duloc represent refugees who are rejected because of their appearance or quirks, and their ability to be confident and love themselves is another strong message.

Becky Frohlinger, who recently came back to Winnipeg after graduating from the University of North Carolina for musical theatre, will be playing the character Gingy.

“When I got cast in the show I thought, I should watch this again to view it from a different angle as an adult, and it’s actually a lot deeper than it’s presented to be,” Frohlinger said. “There’s diversity and how to deal with oppressors like Farquaad… it’s like rising personal confidence and overcoming the obstacles in your life.”

“I think Gingy is hilarious and I love that it’s a puppet played by a woman,” she said. “I think he kind of has an attitude and I love that.

For tickets and information, visit www.rainbowstage.ca/shrek-the-musical