Some of the cast challenges were met last December when over 100 people auditioned to be in our production. As a director, it was exciting to see so many people interested in working on the show, and several strong singers and actors who were willing to accept smaller parts simply to be a part of the show. As a result, we were able to find a strong group of 33 actors to perform the show (with two youth roles double cast), and prepared to begin rehearsals in December and January.
The tech staff also had many challenges to overcome, including the fact that the show includes a dragon onstage. The entire staff worked together to build our dragon, and the result is stage magic for our audience. We were also blessed with four actors who also served as puppeteers in the show for the dragon, and brought her to life during each performance. Other challenges included making an actor look like Shrek - audience will know what he looks like from the books and movie. The actor playing Lord Farquaad would need to perform on their knees in order to be 3 feet tall, and this was a challenge for the Costume Designer. Pinocchio's nose would need to grow twice during the show, and several other puppets were needed including Gingy (the Gingerbread Man). Overall, this show took us out of our comfort zone and challenged us to come up with solutions within our limitations of time, budget and space. I hope that you will agree that our staff and volunteers did some amazing work on this show.
If you're interested in attending our production of this amazing show, the original run of our 2013 opening musical will take place through March 9, 2013. However, we hope to extend the show based on ticket demand. If you would like more information, call our Box Office during regular business hours (Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.) or visit the MCT website.
