Leeds’ Shrek shines with heart and humor

Leeds Center for the Arts opened per­for­mances of Shrek the Musical this past week­end, and just like Shrek, this pro­duc­tion was like an onion: It had layers. 

Shrek the Musical opened at Leeds on June 12 and is based on the 2001 ani­mat­ed Dreamworks film. The musi­cal focus­es on many clas­sic fairy­tale crea­tures, along with a green ogre, a talk­ing don­key, a feisty princess, and a short-tem­pered royal. 

There always proves to be a risk when doing a show in which the source mate­r­i­al is so cov­et­ed, just as Shrek is. However, it is safe to say that this pro­duc­tion does not disappoint. 

Nick Vannoy stands out as a mighty force, tak­ing the tit­u­lar char­ac­ter to places of true heart and hero­ism even as he stands cov­ered in green paint. From the moment his mouth opens at the begin­ning of the show, the audi­ence knows one thing: this is Shrek. 

This pro­duc­tion is able to course through the ebbs and flows of the script while also adding the cre­ative pas­sion Leeds is known for. 

While Vannoy’s per­for­mance reminds us of a char­ac­ter we know and love, we find a new­found ado­ra­tion for our favorite red­head. Rebecca Keith takes on the colos­sal chal­lenge of play­ing Princess Fiona, a char­ac­ter full of sass and a rather chal­leng­ing score. 

Keith exe­cutes this role flaw­less­ly, per­fect­ly bal­anc­ing comedic tim­ing with cun­ning vocal prowess. Not to men­tion, the chem­istry she and Vannoy have on stage is almost palpable. 

The real heart of the pro­duc­tion, how­ev­er, falls in with the fairy­tale crea­tures. We meet all of the famil­iar faces, from the three pigs to the Mad Hatter. The pièce de résis­tance of the fairy­tale ensem­ble is when they come togeth­er to sing Freak Flag, a song about cel­e­brat­ing what makes every indi­vid­ual special. 

Grace Owen’s inter­pre­ta­tion of Gingy leads that song, and she com­plete­ly steals the show. Even through her high-pitched char­ac­ter voice, any­one can tell that Owen will be on Broadway someday. 

It’s quite clear that every sin­gle mem­ber of the cast has poured their heart into the show. Going from high-pow­ered tracks like Forever to wish­ful songs like Who I’d Be, Leeds is able to per­fect­ly bal­ance the heart with out­ra­geous talent. 

Directed by Ellie Miller and Steve Crosby, Shrek the Musical will run at Leeds Center for the Arts until June 28. This is a show you will want to see.