The starring roles share their thoughts on the long wait to take the stage once again in anticipation of the grand four-night performance of Shrek the Musical.

Excitement and suspense are what the actors and stagehands from Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute (MBCI) are feeling right now leading up to their showcase of a classic tale as this is their first performance since the pandemic.

"[We're extremely excited] because we missed out on one year of musicals that we would have had and this is going to be the last one that we'll be able to do as grade twelves," says Seth Walters who plays Shrek. "I'm super stoked to have been given a part as a lead and been able to work so closely with Ms. Reimer and Mr. Koslowsky and everyone to kind of bring this thing to life."

Walters, Hannah Storsley who plays Fiona, and Justice Rolston as Lord Farquaad, are all in their grade 12 year and are grateful to have one last chance to participate in a school production. Hannah Sidhu who is cast as Donkey is in grade 10 and has the chance to participate in more shows.

One aspect that is always enjoyable about high school productions is that the student actors get to set the bar for what the audience can expect with original interpretations of a character and unique delivery of lines.

"I think it was really interesting to see the way that individuals have shaped their character throughout the course of our practices," says Storsley. "When we started off, you could see a lot of people kind of recreating the direct emotions that are written in the script and as we've gone on, you can just see people develop into characters that are completely different from the original and still echoing parts of those characters."

As an example, Rolston shares that while stepping into the role of the villain of the story, he's had to let go of being nice to others.

"Kind of just taking a step back and thinking of things that I normally wouldn't say, thinking of things that are funny and rude, was kind of what helped me shape that role for Lord Farquaad."

Sidhu had a similar experience when channelling her variation of Donkey. The character is known for being loud, and somewhat annoying but also dear to our hearts, and this grade-10 actress says this is a new and exciting experience.

"I wouldn't say that I and my character are exactly alike. I'm typically not the loudest person in the room, I mean, I can be, but typically I'm not. So, having to play that big and always happy and comedic character was definitely different from my normal character because I would say I'm more reserved as just a natural human, but getting to play that comedic role is very fun and it's a new experience."

With finishing touches being made, director Kelly Reimer says this is the exciting part, with all the heavy lifting out of the way people are getting ready to entertain an audience.

Tickets are selling out fast and those wishing to watch are being encouraged to get theirs before time runs out. Show dates start Wednesday, April 26 and end on Saturday, April 29, with showtimes at 7 p.m.

Tickets can be purchased at https://29667.encoreticketing.com/r/events/

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