Brown County High School and Middle School students will take to the stage this weekend with several performances of the spring show, “Shrek The Musical.”
The musical remains faithful to the original 2001 film, which features a diverse cast of characters that set out on a fairy tale journey.
The film uses humor and theatrics to explore some difficult topics such as self-acceptance and the value of friendship, and the musical takes it a few steps further, bringing many musical moments that shed some more light on the characters’ backstories and emotions they experience throughout the tale.
Sawyer Kelp will fill the main role as Shrek — the diamond-in-the-rough ogre who feels feared and unwanted by the rest of the world.
Shrek becomes an unlikely hero when he reluctantly takes on the great errand of rescuing Princess Fiona, played by Lily Voils, in an effort to save his home from the clutches of Lord Farquaad, played by Conner Henderson.
Shrek is joined on his quest by the comedic sidekick Donkey, who will be played by Oliver Tincher. Along the way, they run into foe-turned-friend Dragon, played by Alyson Pennington.
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The students said last week that they all look forward to stepping into the roles from a beloved film for different reasons.
“It’s a great opportunity, because, you know, I’m the star, with childhood characters,” Kelp said.
Voils said she sees some of herself in the character she plays.
“Fiona is a very spunky, out there, voices-her-opinion kind of gal,” she said.
“And I’m like, ‘Hmm, I wonder where I’ve seen that before.’”
Henderson said that every song is “a banger,” sure to have the audience entertained.
“So even if you’re not on stage, you can have fun backstage because it’s basically a little party,” Henderson said.
Pennington said she enjoys the “chaos” of the production.
“There’s always something happening backstage,” she said.
The show is being directed by John Elmore, who has been volunteering in the Brown County High School theater department since November.
Elmore has an extensive background in the Hollywood film industry, most notably working on feature films including Spider-Man (2002), Point Break and Lethal Weapon 4.
He has also been in the Director’s Guild of America for 30 years.
Elmore and his family are from Brown County. He said last week that after a 35-year career in Hollywood, he moved back from Los Angeles, Calif., three years ago to be with and care for his parents.
Along with helping out at the high school, Elmore has also directed several productions at the Brown County Playhouse.
Through his time at both the Playhouse and the high school, Elmore said he has seen a lot of growth and passion in al those involved in this weekend’s show.
“The kids are great, they really are. They’re really enthusiastic,” he said.
According to him, the students essentially run the whole production — from the building of the sets, to the operation of the lights, to the process of repeating run-throughs, all the way through the upcoming performance-filled weekend.
Also included in this production is live music performed by members of Brown County School bands. They will utilize the pit, underneath the stage, for the first time in years, according to Elmore.
“We had to literally clear cobwebs out of it,” he said.
Combining live music with on-stage performances can be a difficult task, but according to all the students, rehearsals have been going very well for the group.
“(Rehearsals) are longer than we’ve had them before, but I feel like it’s going well. Everyone gets along,” Voils said.
“I feel good about it personally, I think it’s super fun. I haven’t been that stressed or anything, and rehearsals have been super good, and we’re getting costumes done, and sets, and lights, and it’s so cool.”
“Overall, I feel pretty confident,” Kelp said.
“Obviously there are some problems, of course, because it’s not going to be perfect just yet, but I feel like it’s going pretty well.”
The students said they hope people come to enjoy the show not only because they have been working hard on it, but also because it is a very funny production that features great music.
“I’ve had a really good experience,” Voils said.
“Just get up and dance with us at the end, that’s the only thing that I ask!”
The cast
Sawyer Kelp as Shrek
Lilly Voils as Fiona
Oliver Tincher as Donkey
Conner Henderson as Lord Farquaad
Alyson Pennington as Dragon
Cameron Higgins as Pinocchio
Ella East as Gingy
Basil Grimes as Big Bad Wolf
LaReina Gonzalez, Aubrey Harden and Abby Williams as the Three Little Pigs
Ella Spahr as White Rabbit
Genevieve Wilson as Fairy Godmother
Caleb Clifford as Pinocchio
Preston Zimmer as Wicked Witch
Taylor Myers as Sugar Plum Fairy
Theo King as Ugly Duckling
Owen East, Ghost Roberds and Wilbur Foster as Three Bears
Wesley Bethards as Mad Hatter
Jupiter Myers as Humpty Dumpty
Zavier Himebaugh as Elf
Maya Huber as Mama Ogre
Dereck Middleton as Papa Ogre
Kynley Voils as Little Shrek
Olivia Rusin as Young Fiona
Chloe Allen as Teen Fiona
Chloe Allen, Bristal Bryenton and Rylan Myers as Three Blind Mice
Jakob Praire as Captain
Savannah Oden, Katie Tipton, Anna Tipton, Haley Wampler and Makayla Sizemore as Ensemble
See the show
When: 7 p.m. on Friday, April 14, 2 and 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 15 and 2 p.m. on Sunday, April 16.
Where: Brown County High School auditorium, 235 Schoolhouse Lane
Tickets: Tickets are $10 for reserved seating, $7 for adults, $5 for students and $3 for obstructed view and can be found at onthestage.tickets/brown-county-theatre-department/individual-tickets.
