He’s green, but he’s not the Grinch. And for holidays he’s coming to 2 local theaters
Christmas just got a whole lot greener in Middle Georgia with two productions of “Shrek the Musical” being performed by both the Perry Players and Macon Little Theatre.
Sylvia Haynie, show director and artistic manager for Macon Little Theatre, said her goup’s 50 person production is a revival of their 2014 production because all four people who played the principal characters initially in 2014 are returning. These characters include Shrek, Fiona, Donkey and Lord Farquaad.
In addition to the returning characters and roles, the production is full of songs that are “both exciting and new,” Haynie said. With 20 musical numbers, the play is a combination of both speaking and singing. There is also lots of choreography, including big production numbers with tap dancing, including tap dancing mice.
“It’s a greatly holiday or summer show,” said Haynie.
Although Haynie said she is aware that Perry Players is also doing the musical, she said that the shows are chosen far in advance due to having to pay royalty fees. Consequently, overlaps in local theater productions happen because the shows have to be planned a year to a year and a half advance and have to be “of interest to both the actors and the audience.”
Prior to every performance, Haynie said there is also going to be special event for kids with the different characters from the show. She said these “teas” will start one hour before the curtain and will end 20 minutes prior to the curtain going up. Some of the events include Tea with Fiona, Cookies with Gingy, Cheese and Crackers with the Three Blind Mice and Tea with the Wicked Witch. The teas will be separate events for which tickets can be purchased on the website. For the audience at the performance, she said there is going to be a special Feed the Dragon event where people can get up close and personal with the show’s dragon.
“The show was a big hit in 2014, and lots of people are going to be excited to see these actors back in these roles,” she stated. “They were all amazing. It was an amazing feat of scheduling to get them all at a time when they would be available, so we feel very fortunate to be able to bring this huge show to the Macon audiences.”
Hunter Hufnagel, the artistic director for Perry Players’ “Shrek The Musical,” said the 53 members of their production have put in a lot of work over the last two months.
“We have a really talented cast all around — our leads and our ensemble,” he stated.
Hufnagel said the play follows the plot of the first “Shrek” movie, which was “extremely popular.” He said the musical itself was nominated for many Tony awards when it was on Broadway in 2008.
“I was getting a lot of people in the shows who wanted us to do the show,” he explained. “It’s very popular amongst all ages.”
Although the show is not necessarily a Christmas show, Hufnagel said it is centered around family, friendship and magic and is perfect for any age. In fact, he has cast members from ages 8 and older and even entire families who are performing in the musical.
“We have a lot of returning actors in this show and a lot of new people,” he said. “It’s been a really neat show to work on. We also have some really neat special effects that I think are going to really captivate the audience.”
In addition to the special effects, Hufnagel said they have a team of about six costumers that have been working tirelessly over the last two and half months making costumes for all the characters that look authentically just like the movies everyone has seen in theaters.
“They really worked hard making it look like that,” he commented. “The set looks just like what you would see in the movie. People are really going to recognize the show that everybody knows and loves.”
Plays in Middle Georgia
“The Harmony Baptist Church Ladies Auxiliary Christmas Jubilee”
Where: Backlot Players Community Theater, The Rose Theater, 23 W. Johnston St., Forsyth
When: 7:30 p.m. Dec. 13-14, 2:30 p.m. Dec. 15.
Cost: $15-$18
Information: www.thebacklotplayers.org, 478-994-0443
“Elf the Musical”
Where: Theatre Macon, 438 Cherry St., Macon
When: 8 p.m. Dec. 6-7, 13-14, 20-21; 7:30 p.m. Dec. 12 and 19, 2:30 p.m. Dec. 8 and 15
Cost: $25, $20 seniors 60 and older, $25 military with ID and $10 youths 23 and younger
Information: theatremacon.com, 478-746-9485
“Shrek the Musical”
Where: Macon Little Theatre, 4220 Forsyth Road, Macon
When: 8 p.m. Dec. 6-7 and 12-14, 2:30 p.m. Dec. 8 and 15.
Cost: $20, $15 seniors ages 60 and old, $10 for students with ID.
Information: www.maconlittletheatre.org , 478-471-7529
“Shrek the Musical”
Where: Perry Players Community Theatre, 909 Main St., Perry
When: 7:30 p.m. Dec. 6-7, 12-14 and 19-21, 2:30 p.m. Dec. 8, 15 and 22
Cost: $20; seniors 60 and older, military, students and children 3-18
Information: www.perryplayers.org, 478-987-5354
This story was originally published December 6, 2019 at 6:00 AM.