The familiar green ogre Shrek will make his London stage debut next year when Shrek The Musical opens at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane on 7 June 2011, following previews in May.
Shrek The Musical, which played on Broadway for just over a year, is based on William Steig’s book and Dreamworks’s 2001 Oscar-winning animated film which told the story of a loveable swamp-dwelling ogre who embarks on a mission to reclaim the deed to his land. Joined by a wise-cracking donkey who won’t shut up, this unlikely hero fights a fearsome dragon, rescues the feisty Princess Fiona and learns that real friendship and true love are not only found in fairytales.
The stage version has an original score by Jeanine Tesori (Caroline, Or Change at the National Theatre) and book and lyrics by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Lindsay-Abaire.
For this UK production, Donmar Warehouse associate director Rob Ashford, whose work includes directing Rachel Weisz in A Streetcar Named Desire, teams up with the director of the original Broadway production, Jason Moore (Avenue Q). The creative team also includes designer Tim Hatley, who won a Tony Award for his designs for Shrek on Broadway.
Currently at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane is Oliver!, which ends its run on 8 January 2011.
CB