‘Shrek' is a good watch for the young at heart

Michael C. Moore's review in the Kitsap Sun. (Photos by Alfonso Barrera)

On opening weekend, the cast of the Mountaineers Players' production of "Shrek, the Musical" at the Kitsap Forest Theater were having their makeup washed off by prodigious rainfall.

For the performance I saw, though — Aug. 2 — they had to hose down the floor/stage at intermission to beat down the dust.

Having weathered the inclement stuff at KFT in previous years, I appreciated the extremely clement conditions — and I'm sure director Nikki Fey-Burgett's cast and crew did, too.

The performance had a lot more than good weather to recommend it, though. Fey-Burgett has assembled a large and talented cast of actors and — especially — singers to bring the David Lindsay-Abaire—Jeanine Tesori song-and-dance (based on a trilogy of DreamWorks Animation film features) to the forest. From its dozens of bright costumes and imaginative (and minimal, by necessity) sets to its depth of vocal and instrumental talent, it's generally really well wrought.

And the setting. Well. It's all the same trees that were there last time you went, but you never get tired of them — especially when they're providing shade, as they were on Aug. 2, and not shelter from the harsher elements.

I have to issue a strong warning, though, to anyone considering a hike down to the remaining performances, Saturday and Sunday matinees through Aug. 16: Be prepared for distractions.

"Shrek's" best features, for adults, are its clever lyrics and snarky, funny script. For the younger set, it's the presentation of the characters — not just the Big Green Ogre himself, but the pint-sized Lord Farquaad, the comical Donkey and the platoon of fairy-tale characters that Shrek takes it upon himself to re-relocate from his bog and back to their homes in Duloc.

For many of the youngsters — including a big bunch of toddlers who haven't grown up knowing the film series because they've just barely started growing up at all — the jokes are over their wee heads, and the characters can only hold their attention for so long, especially during several extended sequences of dialogue or vocal solos or duets.

The little ones were gone by intermission — not physically, but intellectually. There's more movement in the galleries than there is on the stage.

If you're there for the "experience," that's all part of it. But if you're there just to see the show, it's liable to make you grumpier'n a ... well ... an ogre who just wants peace and quiet.

It's too bad, because — as previously stated — the show is quite good. Despite what I felt was a somewhat deliberate pace, the story of Shrek's quest to earn the deed to the bog by rescuing Farquaad's intended (the princess Fiona, the Girl with a Secret) is told efficiently, the costumes are fetching and the music is consistently at a high level (musical director Dawn Brazel has bass and drums to augment the Mountaineers' usual keyboard accompaniment, with Josh Zimmerman doubling on electric guitar to bring a convincing rock ‘n' roll feel to several of the numbers.

The leads — Jason Gingold as Shrek, Meagan Castillo (who played Mary Poppins at KFT only a few weeks ago) as Fiona, Matthew Sythandone as Donkey and Adam Othman as the vertically challenged Farquaad — all are wonderful. A personal highlight is the early-Act 2 gross-out battle between Shrek and Fiona, "I Thinks I Got You Beat," a totally charming sequence where the two gradually warm to each other, with the bonus (at least for the sophomoric, like myself) of perhaps the best fart-and-burp sound effects ever to grace the old amphitheater.

At least, I hope they were sound effects.

A few supporting players get their chance to shine, as well, and none does as much with the opportunity as Taylor Davis as Pinocchio, bringing great comedy and a ripping good voice to the fairy-tale rabble-rouser. Both of Fiona's younger incarnations — Maria Pledger and Anna Vizzare — also do strong vocal work in brief appearances during "I Know It's Today."

Mike Myers voiced the Shrek character in the movies, and the rude, referential humor that drips over into the musical owes a lot to him. Shrek and Donkey aren't a million miles from Wayne and Garth, and the off-color gags are toned down from the "Austin Powers" franchise.

That'll all well and good ... unless you're a 3-year-old, who doesn't get much of any of it. At some point, you become more concerned with whether there's any popcorn left.

If you can follow it through, though — including the distractions — you'll like and appreciate the Mountaineers' "Shrek." Owing to all that musical talent, it might be even more fun to listen to than it is to watch.