The grumpy green hero Shrek took the world by storm with hit movies, TV specials and every kind of cross-promotion you can imagine. So, because Broadway is looking more and more to the movies for inspiration, Shrek: The Musical was inevitable. It hit Broadway in 2008 and the forward-thinking folks at Dreamworks (which produced the movie and the stage show) filmed performances for a future DVD/Blu-ray release. The future has arrived and it costs $19.98; on Blu-ray, $29.99.
It’s a simple story. A privacy-loving ogre (Brian d’Arcy James) sets off on a quest when his swamp is invaded by fairy tale creatures who have been banished by the villainous pipsqueak Lord Farquaad (Christopher Sieber). Along the way, he makes friends with a chatty donkey ( Daniel Breaker) and rescues Princess Fiona (Sutton Foster), who’s hiding a big secret.
Hidden in the adventure, romance and wackiness are lessons about judging books by their covers.
Visually speaking, it’s amazing they pulled this off. The movie was an animated concoction of oddball characters, fairy tale settings and a big dragon. The sets, costumes and makeup do the seemingly impossible job of bringing all that to life in a realistic way that doesn’t overshadow the performances or story. Though the dragon does leave a little to be desired.
Contentwise, if you’ve seen the movie, you have a pretty good idea what to expect. The musical teeters toward loud and obnoxious at times and some of the jokes are aimed squarely at immature audiences, but luckily only a small percentage of showtime is taken up with potty humor. The rest of it is just silly, sweet and occasionally even smart with jokes that are clearly meant for grownups.
Shrek the movie made its share of pop culture references. Because it’s a musical, this version pokes fun at Broadway shows, with quick nods to musicals such as Gypsy, Wicked and The Lion King.
The songs by Jeanine Tesori and David Lindsay-Abaire are fun for the most part, with some clever lyrics and pop- and musical theater-inspired tunes. But most aren’t all that memorable out of context and it’s really the way they’re performed and staged that makes numbers like the exuberant “Morning Person” and the gospel-like “Freak Flag” stand out.
As for the cast, they’re fantastic and go all-out in appropriately over-the-top performances. James is an affecting Shrek, Breaker is the right blend of funny and annoying as Donkey and Foster isa lovably goofy Fiona. The multitasking ensemble of fairy tale creatures, tap-dancing rats and cheery townspeople are flawless. But it’s a gleefully demented Seiber as Farquaad who nearly steals the show.
Shrek isn’t meant to be deep, thought-provoking theater. It’s meant to be fun. And with the upbeat songs and a cast that’s clearly having a ball, it accomplishes that goal.
The production was filmed over several nights and was edited effectively, but it’s too bad they didn’t include the curtain call. Also disappointing is the bonus feature department, with only a singalong option and a short and sadly uninformative behind-the-scenes feature on the Blu-ray version. The standard DVD is bare-bones.
The Greatest Ears in Town: The Arif Mardin Story, Shelter Island, $24.98
This 2010 documentary, which will be available Tuesday, follows the career of one of the music industry’s greatest producers. The brilliant Arif Mardin, also an arranger, a composer and a musician, shaped albums that won him 12 Grammy Awards and some 60 gold and platinum album awards.
His credits include work with Aretha Franklin, the Bee Gees (“Jive Talkin’,” “Nights on Broadway”), Willie Nelson (Shotgun Willie), Dusty Springfield (Dusty in Memphis), Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler (“The Wind Beneath My Wings”) and Norah Jones (Come Away With Me) among many others. This doc is a collection of interviews with people offering their stories and feelings about working with Mardin. Artists interviewed include Franklin, Phil Collins, Quincy Jones, Norah Jones, Dr. John and more.
A must-see for anyone who cares about American popular music. The DVD has 24 minutes of bonus material not in the film.
- Ellis Widner
Released! The Human Rights Concerts 1986-1998, Shout Factory, $59.98
This boxed set gathers five fundraising concerts for Amnesty International that play out over six DVDs, with more than 1,000 minutes of music and interviews.
Beginning with the 1986 concert tour Conspiracy of Hope, the series of concerts began with U2, Lou Reed and The Police. Over the years, the shows included Bruce Springsteen, Green Day, Radiohead, Peter Gabriel, Joni Mitchell, Shania Twain and many others.
But more than a re-release, the set is loaded with more than five hours of bonus material including a documentary, new interviews with Springsteen and Sting, Gabriel’s home movies of the 1986 tour and additional performances by Mumford & Sons, Pete Seeger, Pete Townshend, Bono, Jeff Beck, David Byrne, Coldplay and more.
Style, Pages 51 on 11/03/2013