Cast members of Crescent Heights High School's presentation of Shrek the Musical perform Monday during their first matinee performance.--News Photo Anna Smith
asmith@medicinehatnews.com
Crescent Heights High School is bringing to the stage a story many have seen before, but never quite like this, with their latest production: Shrek the Musical.
Director Jennifer Davies explained that she had previously been in a production of the show in 2013, but wanted to wait to bring it back to the community, so that those who may have seen the earlier show could see the work of the students with fresh eyes.
As the latest in a long line of large musicals done each year at CHHS, Shrek has proved to be slightly more technically demanding, said Davies, due to the large ensemble cast.
“Everybody has their own character and their own costume. And so there were a lot of different individual costumes which were made,” said Davies. “So I would say that for me, the costuming was a larger challenge than normal, which then made all of the technical challenges a little larger.”
She said that between the large cast and the stage crew, there were roughly 85 students working to make the show possible. Monday marked their first matinee performance for the elementary school students of the district, and Davies and the cast alike agreed that they were pleased with the results of their hard work.
“Everybody’s just doing such a good job, and everybody is so talented and awesome. And we have so many new people, who are all really incredible,” said Abigail Begin, who portrays the Dragon, a somewhat sassy, lonely character who fans of the film will recognize instantly. “I think it went really well, and the kids really liked it!”
The cast is made up of both senior and junior high students, which allows for a strong mentorship opportunity that lead actor Carter Curliss said was one of the highlights of being part of the entire show.
“It’s been the connection with the other kids, even if they are in Grade 7 or 8 … It might be Shrek the Musical, but it’s really about the entire ensemble,” said Curliss. “It’s about everyone who’s helping put it on, everyone who’s dancing in the background and singing along, because when I leave off the stage after doing a great solo, I’m getting high fives and fist bumps. Having that connection has been so rewarding.”
Begin encourages those interested in seeing the “awesome” that the cast and crew have created to make their way to the school website, as tickets are still available.
“It’s a lot of laughs, a lot of sad moments that you can expect. It’s not just the traditional Shrek movie,” said Curliss. “There’s so much more emotion and action in it. It’s really just, it’s a blast to come.”
