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Dining India Palace Taco Riendo Uber Herbal Coquina Restaurant Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW TMTO's 'Shrek' is a beautifully absurd romp Who would have thought a big, green ogre living in a swamp would become a franchise? First there was the children's book by William Steige. That led to DreamWorks' uber-popular 2001 animated film, which begat two sequels and a Christmas special. By Bill Varble MailTribune.com By Bill Varble Posted Aug. 4, 2014 @ 12:01 am Updated Aug 4, 2014 at 2:17 AM By Bill Varble Posted Aug. 4, 2014 @ 12:01 am Updated Aug 4, 2014 at 2:17 AM » Social News Who would have thought a big, green ogre living in a swamp would become a franchise? First there was the children's book by William Steige. That led to DreamWorks' uber-popular 2001 animated film, which begat two sequels and a Christmas special. The franchise came to Broadway in 2008 as "Shrek the Musical," with book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire and music by Jeanine Tesori, and has since spread widely. For reasons why, look no further than the Teen Music Theatre of Oregon's production that opened over the weekend at the Craterian Theater at the Collier Center in Medford. There's a gruff (hey, he's an ogre) but good-hearted hero (a pitch-perfect performance by Adam Lohman), the kind we like to root for. There's a wise-cracking but loyal sidekick (Donkey, played by a funny Collin Goldman). A princess in search of her true love (Kelsey Tidball, who exudes elegance both as would-be princess and, after the sun sets, as an ogress). And there is that sine qua non of the fairy-tale world: a dastardly, if diminutive, villain in Lord Farquaad (a deliciously wicked Reid Arthur). This time out, some of the characters get backstories. Spoiled, smarmy Farquaad needs a wife to be a king, lovely Fiona can only be redeemed by a kiss from her true love, and grouchy old Shrek took over his swamp after getting booted out of the ogre family home at 7 with little more than his ogre mother's advice to beware of men with pitchforks. "Shrek" isn't going to make anybody forget "My Fair Lady." It's not supposed to. It's a tongue-in-cheek romp in fractured-fairy-tale mode. Kids will love it, and big kids will get some things on a different level. In case you've been living in Outer Mongolia and have missed the story, a motley crew of fairy tale creatures (Pinocchio, Peter Pan, Humpty Dumpty, the Three Little Pigs, the Mad Hatter, the Big Bad Wolf and many others) have been driven into Shrek's swamp by minions of the villainous Lord Farquaad, who wants to get rid of them. To get his swamp back, Shrek must rescue Princess Fiona from the tower where she's guarded by a dragon and hand her over to Farquaad, who must marry a princess to become a king. The plot diverges a bit from the familiar movie, and the songs are different as well. The twist is the shift in the hero's quest. Shrek thinks his struggle is to drive out the interlopers and regain the swamp. But falling in love changes things, and his real goal becomes the winning of Fiona as his bride. This requires a learning process that embodies the main theme: that outward appearances aren't as important as what's inside, in the heart. There are nearly two dozen songs, with Lindsay-Abaire setting clever and sometimes multi-leveled lyrics to Jeanine Tesori's ebullient tunes. This is a new leaf for Lindsay-Abaire, who's known for darker stuff (his "Kimberly Akimbo" and "Rabbit Hole" have been produced by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival) And under Jennifer Schloming's vocal direction, these kids do them justice, belting them out time and again. Under Jaese Lecuyer's direction, the whole somehow stays in focus, with (I think) something like 60 actors running around the stage. Lecuyer also did the choreography, which ranges from sequences that could be in an old Warner Brothers musical (dancing rats) to a farting-burping contest between Shrek and Fiona ("I Think I Got You Beat"), which is oddly enough the point where Cupid makes an entrance. Gabe Ash's fanciful sets take us from Shrek's swamp to Farquaad's castle through the use of comically overstated flats (Farquaad's digs feature an F monogram), projections and a swampy, fog-machine miasma. "Shrek" is very much a costume piece, and with so many cast members, the creation of Cheryl Cantwell's costumes must have been a herculean task. The pigs have pig snouts. Pinocchio's legs appear to be wooden (you keep looking for his strings). A very funny Gingy (Shelby Hubler) employs some clever puppetry. But in a show full of eye candy, the grandest creation is the guard assigned to Princess Fiona in her tower, an enormous, fantastical dragon operated by four "dragonettes," complete with wings that flap and eyes that light up. But the visual effect that gets the most laughs has to do with Farquaad's puppet-like stature, which is also the butt of some dumb but funny puns. Let's just say it's a role any actor would go to his knees for. If you're thinking of seeing "Shrek" but haven't seen a TMTO production, you're in for a surprise at the quality of this and other TMTO shows. "Shrek" will play Aug. 7-9 at the Craterian in downtown Medford. By Bill Varble MailTribune.com By Bill Varble Posted Aug. 4, 2014 @ 12:01 am Updated Aug 4, 2014 at 2:17 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2014 Local Media Group, Inc. 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