From the screen to the stage, Shrek is now making an appearance at FCHS! Shrek the Musical, written by Jeanine Tesori and David Lindsay-Abaire, tells the story of an ogre living in peace next to his swamp, but  when the neighboring kingdom’s lord, Farquaad, banishes all the fairy tale creatures to Shrek’s swamp, Shrek   will do whatever it takes to get his home back. Along the   way, he meets a talking donkey, a gingerbread man, and  a fair princess. Shrek and the fairy tale creatures learn  to accept themselves for what they are, and to let their  “freak flag fly.”

      The Jagwire had the opportunity to interview Ms. Beth De Marco, the Falls Church High School theatre  teacher and director of Shrek the Musical, and ask her  some questions regarding the show. “I see Falls Church High School students when I read this play,” she stated. “The show’s theme is accepting people for who they are—that what makes any group strong are the things that make each individual person unique and special.”

      Shrek auditions were held September 12 and 13, with callbacks on September 14. Rehearsals began on  September 20, and the cast has been working extremely  hard every day, Monday through Friday, to make sure  the show is the best it can be when it opens in early December. The week leading up to the show is a big deal, with rehearsals every day until 9 p.m.; “it’s called ‘hell   week’ for a reason,” points out Ms. De Marco.

      But it’s not just the cast that is putting in the  work for the show. The tech crew is working just as hard, transforming Falls Church’s auditorium to the fairytale land of Shrek and Princess Fiona. Lights, sound, props,     and costumes are all taken care of as well, and the crew     has been working every Thursday and Saturday since September 15, until the weeks leading up to the show. They then work with the cast’s schedule   as well. “It takes a lot of people to run a theatre company at the High School level,” Ms. DeMarco stated.

      Shrek the Musical opens December 1,    and runs through December 3. The cast includes Falls Church students, a few of them being Carson Hopkins (11) as Shrek, Eileanora Clock (12) as Princess Fiona,  Patrick Kearney (10) as Donkey, and  Adam Ashley (9) as Lord Farquaad.