Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Shrek The Musical - Synopsis (Act I)

Once upon a time, a young ogre named Shrek lives with his parents in a swamp. On his seventh birthday, Shrek's parents send him out of their house and into the world to make his living. They warn him that because of his looks, everyone will hate him, and he will not have a happy ending. Later, an embittered, hardened Shrek is living contentedly alone in a swamp ("Big Bright Beautiful World"). His solitude is disrupted when all the fairy-tale beings of the land begin showing up on his property, exiled from the Kingdom of Duloc by order of the diminutive Lord Farquaad ("Story of My Life"). Shrek decides to travel to see Farquaad to try to regain his privacy ("The Goodbye Song") and along the way reluctantly rescues a talkative Donkey from some of the Lord's goons. Donkey insists on tagging along ("Don't Let Me Go").

Meanwhile, Lord Farquaad is torturing Gingy into revealing the whereabouts of the remaining fairy tale creatures in hiding when King Harold, the father of Princess Fiona, enters and asks Farquaad if he would be willing to marry his daughter. Farquaad agrees, as he needs a Queen to have a perfect kingdom. Farquaad then rushes out before Harold can explain what happens to Fiona after sunset. The story then goes back to a seven-year-old Princess Fiona dreaming of the brave knight who, her storybooks tell her, will one day rescue her from her tower, and end her mysterious curse with "True Love's First Kiss". As she grows into a teenager, and then a headstrong woman, she becomes a little bit stir crazy, but she never loses her faith in her fairy tales ("I Know It's Today").

Shrek and Donkey arrive in Duloc and make their way to Farquaad's palace, disrupting a kingdom-wide lottery to choose the "brave knight" who will finally rescue Princess Fiona from her castle (which is surrounded by lava and protected by a fire-breathing dragon) so that Farquaad may marry her and thus become a legitimate king ("What's Up, Duloc?"). Shrek impresses Farquaad with his size, appearance, and "expendability," and the ogre agrees to undertake the rescue in exchange for the deed to his swamp ("What's Up, Duloc? (reprise)").

Shrek and Donkey set off to find Fiona ("Travel Song"). After crossing the rickety old bridge and arriving at the castle, Shrek sets off alone to rescue Fiona while Donkey encounters a female Dragon and her knights. Dragon immediately wants to keep him for her own ("Forever"), but Donkey narrowly escapes. When Shrek finds Fiona, his lack of interest in playing out her desired, romantic rescue scene annoys her, and Shrek must drag her off by force. The two of them reunite with Donkey and all three attempt to escape while being chased by the angry Dragon and the skeletons of her past victims ("This Is How A Dream Comes True").

Once they are safe, Fiona insists that Shrek reveal his identity. She is appalled that her rescuer is an ogre and not the Prince Charming her stories indicate. Shrek explains that he is merely her champion; instead, she is to wed Lord Farquaad. The trio begins their journey back to Farquaad's palace, but Fiona becomes apprehensive as the sun begins to set. She insists that they rest for the night and that she spend the night, alone, in a nearby cave. Donkey and Shrek remain awake, and Donkey, delighted at being referred to by Fiona as a "noble steed," asks Shrek who he would be, if Shrek did not have to be an ogre anymore. As Shrek opens up to his new friend, Fiona, transformed into an ogress, stands apart and alone in the moonlight and listens ("Who I'd Be").

Shrek The Musical Tickets at Sold Out Ticket Market
Ticket Market for Shrek The Musical Tickets

No comments:

Post a Comment