Shrek, The Musical

The All-City musical was fantastic! Everybody in the cast was incredibly talented, and one of the most amazing things about this show is that it is completely run by high school students. These kids are such professionals, it's so impressive!

The show itself, Shrek, The Musical had a lot of heart and was overall pretty great! It was pretty true to the plot of the original movie, although there were many plot holes. Who knows though, those holes could've been there in the beginning; it's been so long since I've seen the film that I wouldn't know any better anyways! The music was great- a lot of fun, energetic songs, some ballads, a love song- you know, the typical makings of a solid musical theater soundtrack.

The talent behind the show, from the principal actors to the extras, was unparalleled. Each and every person on that stage managed to steal the scene, even if for only a second. In addition to that, it was very clear that every actor there was ecstatic to be there and genuinely loved putting on that show. That's something that cannot be taken for granted in a cast! Like in my school's most recent musical (Hello, Dolly!) nobody in the cast looked like they were happy and enjoying themselves. It didn't help that the show they were putting on was a hard to follow "romp" set in the 1890's that can only be made enjoyable through the presence of Barbara Streisand, but still! 

Several of the actors shone in particular. Obviously, there were the four principal roles- Shrek, Princess Fiona, Donkey, and Lord Farquaad. Each person brought something great to the part. The actor behind Shrek had strong vocals and the perfect comedic and dramatic pacing for delivering his lines. He really brought Shrek's "layers" to life. Lord Farquaad stole all of his scenes- he played up the audience, was incredibly animated, and really managed to create the subtle nuances needed when portraying a character of such magnitude. Donkey not only was a vocal powerhouse, but had excellent comedic skills. He would have made Eddie Murphy proud, to say the least. Finally, the leading lady behind Fiona was perfect. She was an incredible, gifted vocalist, an amazing dancer, and played the character as perfectly as could be- a true triple threat. Those big four were an unstoppable force on the stage.

Some of the supporting cast members who stood out included Pinocchio, a girl who played "the sugar plum fairy" and voiced the Gingerbread Man (a puppet), a girl who played the Dragon (a giant puppet controlled by multiple people, the young lady looked like something straight out of Dreamgirls), a boy who played multiple comedic characters in the Ensemble, and the two girls who played the younger versions of Princess Fiona.

The only parts of the show that weren't so great were really things that couldn't have been controlled. The sound during the show was having many issues, oftentimes cutting off the microphones for the characters who only had one or two lines. If I was one of those actors, I probably would have been slightly annoyed because if those are my only moments to shine, I don't want them being taken away from a faulty sound system! The only other issue was the fact that there was essentially an army of small children at the theater creating disturbances and noise all over the place. That once again reinforced my plans to never have children.

Overall, the All-City Musical was a fantastic experience, well worth the trip and the money paid! Hopefully next year, they will perform yet another fantastic show, because I'd definitely love to see it!

Last Night/Today

Yesterday I went to a whopping four graduation parties all within the span of three and a half hours! I was pretty impressed with myself. It was a lot of fun though, I enjoyed seeing several of my friends again. I went to one girl's party who I had several classes with this year, I went to one of my longtime friends from elementary school's party that she was sharing with her cousin, who I am also friends with, I went to my twin friends' party, and then I ended my party circuit at one of my lacrosse friend's party. (He was the one who asked me to prom literally the day after I sorted things out with Jack regarding prom. I'm still really annoyed with Jack lately, he's been pretty inadvertently rude to me lately.) Overall, the parties were a lot of fun!

After my whirlwind of parties, I went to Andy's house to celebrate his birthday with him. When I was in Paris I saw this great Beatles poster and I bought that for him. We had a lovely time, just relaxing and enjoying each others' company. I can't believe he's twenty now! When I met him, he was just turning 18 (He's a year and a half older than me). While I was in London, we hit our 2nd anniversary. Honestly it's been the best two years of my life. My immediate family still isn't very keen on him, but he makes me incredibly happy and I'm not sure if they realize that. This relationship has been the most emotionally fulfilling experiences! He treats me with so much respect, reveres me as a goddess, and would do anything for me. And that alone is somethings that any parent would wish for in their child's significant other. 

Today I'm once again a social butterfly! I am currently cleaning out my room and my closet, and soon heading out to Akron for the All-City Musical, Shrek, The Musical! I'm going with my friend Amanda, and I'm pretty excited. I'll be sure to give an update about it.