Shrek the Musical to hit the stage

By Alejandra Pulido-Guzman - Lethbridge Herald on February 17, 2022.

Herald photo by Alejandra Pulido-Guzman Winston Churchill High School students ran through a scene of their upcoming Shrek-The Musical during a media call at the school's cafeteria.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com

Winston Churchill High School students are preparing to wow audiences with their live performance of Shrek – The Musical in March at Southminster United Church.
The process began in September when auditions were held, and at that time those involved in the production had been rehearsing three times a week. Originally slated for January, the production was put on hiatus until March due to COVID-19 concerns.
“It’s been awesome, the kids have been so great. It’s been a bit of a learning curve with the masks,” said Emily Morrison, drama teacher at Winston Churchill High School, during a media scrum in December at the school’s cafeteria.
She said that students had the opportunity to take their masks off for the first time and it was an overwhelming experience to hear their voices.
Morrison said it has been great getting back into a routine again, being with kids doing all the fun parts of teaching, like coaching and directing which she said is the best part of her job.
“It’s been kinda difficult because there are all these protocols, you have to sing with a mask on, practice with masks on so it’s a little hard to do that,” said Johanna Zieber, who plays Fiona.
But even with restrictions, the children are very excited to be able to do the play – to be able to do things in general, as expressed by Hayden Forsyth who plays Donkey.
“Something I have noticed from coming back from a year of nothing is that kids want to do everything,” said Morrison.
She said there are between 75 to 100 children involved in the production, which includes those on stage, off stage and behind the scenes in classes building things.
Morrison said they decided to do Shrek as a musical instead of a regular play because WCHS has not done a musical in a really long time.
“I thought, we are coming back from COVID, might as well go big or go home,” said Morrison.
She said they picked this musical because there was something everyone can play, it is great for younger audiences, and they wanted to choose something they can share wide and far with the Lethbridge community.
“I like how it stays close enough to the original and the message is still the same, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, don’t judge a book by it’s cover,” said Issac Steckly, who plays Shrek.
The musical will be performed at Southminster United Church on March 3 at 7 p.m., March 4 at 2 p.m and 7 p.m and their last performance will be March 5 at 5 p.m.
Tickets can be purchased online at the school website or by phoning the school office at (403) 328-4723.

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