“Shrek the Musical” opens May 5

Everyone’s favorite ogre, Shrek, is coming to the San Juan Community Theater starting May 5 and running through May 21.

“I love the themes of this show. Most fairy tales revolve around nobility: princes and princesses that we imagine as beautiful, wealthy, and admirable,” said Nathan Kessler-Jeffrey, Community Theater’s Executive Artistic Director and director of ‘Shrek the Musical.’ “Shrek is a story about the ‘outcasts,’ ‘weirdos,’ and ‘freaks.’ It centers on the marginalized and humanizes the folks who might look, sound, or think differently than the heroes of traditional fairy tales.”

When asked why the story resonated with so many people, he explained that most people have at one time or another felt like a bit of a misfit.

“Have you ever felt like you didn’t fit in? Like you were alone? Like you were waiting and longing for someone who could understand and love you for all that you are? Shrek is a story for everyone who has wished to be a hero but felt they never could. It’s for everyone who’s felt that if people knew the truth, they would not be loved,” he said.

Kessler-Jeffrey chose the play for two reasons. The first being there are 50 roles in Shrek the Musical. “This means everyone in the cast gets a part to play,” he explained. “The show is built to be tremendously inclusive in the casting and can be done with anywhere from 20 to 50 people. When reading it, I could easily see each and every role played by members of our community.”

The second goes back to the very concept of fairy tales. “Fairy tales are part of how we develop values. I wish Shrek had been one of the stories that I was raised on as a child. I believe it would have helped me develop more empathy from a young age,” Kessler-Jeffrey said.

The musical is based on the Oscar-winning DreamWorks Animation film, Shrek The Musical, a Tony Award-winning fairy tale adventure. The story revolves around an ogre, Shrek, who after years of living a solitary life in his swamp, becomes an unlikely hero who, alongside his wisecracking friend Donkey, finds himself on the life-changing mission of saving Princess Fiona.

There are differences between the musical and the movie, but the audience will be treated to many of their favorite scenes.

“Anyone who joins us for Shrek the Musical is going to recognize some great bits that have carried over from the film,” Kessler-Jeffrey said. The scene when Shrek and Donkey first arrive at Dulac is one example and is one of his personal favorites. Lord Farquaad’s interrogation of the Gingerbread Man is another.

Kessler-Jeffrey also touched on a few key differences.

“The character of Fiona has been expanded and developed from the film, the exiled fairy tale creatures have their own story and arc, and there are some truly fantastic musical numbers that will have audiences dancing in their seats,” he explained.

Those musical numbers include favorites like “I Know It’s Today.”

“[That is] a show-stopping song in Act 1 where Princess Fiona, at three different ages, struggles with waiting for her prince to arrive,” Kessler-Jeffery said. “‘Who I’d Be’m is a tremendous closing number to the first act as Shrek dares to dream about how his life could be different.” His personal favorite song and dance scene, however, is “Freak Flag,” sung by fairy tale characters who have spent most of the show being booted around from place to place. “I don’t want to give away the story, but it’s a fantastic song,” he said.

When asked what the most challenging song was, Kessler-Jeffrey explained that songs that include intense dancing usually take the most work, like “Morning Person” at the top of Act 2 or “What’s Up Dulac?”

There are 35 actors in the performance, and islanders will recognize many of the names:

Adam Champlin; Alisha Halverson; Alison Power; Annesa Knowles; Annika Bjorling; Ashlynn Wilson; Brandon Cadwell; Carrie Jewett; Chiara Power; Christy Desmereaux; Clayton Banry; Cody Balcomb-Bartok; Colleen Roberts; Corbin Marcotte; Corey Shaller; Corinne Morrell; Cris DuVall; Erin Wygant; Floyd Bourne; Gigi Evans; Jennifer Oettinger; Jillian Urbach; Kailey Genther; Liam DeYoung; Lucy Marinkovich; Madeleine Rose; Patriqi Holahan; Penelope Haskew; River Wylde; Rowan Roberts-Davis; Sean Mc Laughlin; Shane Merritt; Shelby Mullin; Sidney Herda and Tyla McKay.

With the sheer number of actors, costumes, puppets, dancing and singing, “Shrek the Musical” is one of the most ambitious productions the Theatre has attempted to perform since he arrived in 2018, according to Kessler-Jeffrey. “I feel the biggest challenge is putting it all together while keeping the focus on telling a very human story,” he said. “This show has puppets, prosthetics, special effects, intricate harmonies, tap dancing, and a dragon.”

Kessler-Jeffrey added that the production has only been possible because of the hundreds of staff and volunteer hours.

“I’d love to shout out to each and every one of them, but I’m going to pick one to highlight. Mary Hurley is our props master as well as designing and building over a dozen puppets for the show, including the dragon. I don’t want to spoil the surprise, but the reveal is going to be incredible,” he said. “We’re very lucky to have a cast that is amazing about helping with scene changes, set construction, sound design, and all of the behind-the-scenes elements. I don’t think I’ve ever had a cast so willing to jump in wherever they are needed.”

Callie McKay and Courtney Kessler-Jeffrey, Nathan’s wife, have been working hard at creating the costumes.

“The costumes are amazing. Lord Farquaad has tiny legs. Fiona is seen at three different ages in her life. There are tap shoes that look like rats, Pinocchio’s nose grows, Baba Yaga makes a cameo, the three pigs look like a construction worker, a lumberjack, and a farmer. I’m utterly delighted by everything I’ve seen so far.”

The costumes were all designed with the needs of dancers and singers in mind. Shoes were paid especially close attention to.

“From the very beginning [we work with] the shoes that the characters will be wearing. Shoes are important both from a standpoint of safety and character development,” Nathan said.

While the crew has been working tirelessly on the production, they have also been having fun.

“This cast has a delicious sense of humor, onstage and off. They’ve picked up on my tendency to take myself a little too seriously and they help me remember to lighten up.” Nathan laughed. “The other night during a rehearsal break, they spotted me frantically moving set pieces to prep for the next scene and the whole cast burst into thunderous mock applause: I was finally helping out.”

Tickets are available at www.sjctheatre.org or by calling the box office at 360-378-3210.

Kelley Balcomb-Bartok / Staff photo Shrek’s sidekick Donkey (Carolyn Jewett) discovers that the Dragon (Gigi Evans) has feelings for him in Shrek The Musical, opening May 5 at the San Juan Community Theatre.

Kelley Balcomb-Bartok / Staff photo Gingy the Gingerbread Man (Ashlynn Wilson) challenges Pinocchio (Corbin Blue) as a cast of homeless fairy-tale characters (including Clayton Banry, left) look on after they’ve been evicted by the vertically challenged Lord Farquaad.