This year’s Rocky Mount Academy Middle School production, Shrek, Jr., was held at the Dunn Center on November 8th and 9th at 7 pm. This is a classic show (and movie) known and loved by almost every one, and RMA students did an amazing job bringing it to life. 

In case you weren’t lucky enough to see our students in action, here’s what happens: The show follows an ogre named Shrek (played by Ben Waggoner) who is very happy living alone in his swamp. One day, he wakes up to see his home invaded by a multitude of fairytale creatures who have been exiled from their home (Ensemble in “Story of my Life”) by the tiny but mighty Lord Faarquand (played by Landon Newcomb). So, in order to restore his swamp to the seclusion he is used to, Shrek sets out to find Lord Farquaad and demand it righted. On his way to the castle, Shrek rescues a talking donkey (played by Ada Dunton), and they soon become friends and companions on this quest. When they reach the castle, Farquaad initially refuses Shrek’s request but soon strikes a bargain with him: If Shrek is able to bring the princess Fiona (played by Maria Falconi) to him, his swamp will go back to the way it once was. When they arrive, they run into trouble but are ultimately able to escape with the princess. As they make their way back to Duloc, Shrek and Fiona soon find themselves falling for each other. When they finally reach the kingdom, Fiona procrastinates meeting Farquaad and goes to a near by barn for the night, where Donkey finds her transformed into an ogre. She tells him she is cursed to live as a woman by day but an ogre by night. Fiona and Shrek get into an argument just before they separate, and when Shrek delivers her to Lord Farquaad, he hands him the deed to his swamp and Shrek goes home. When he gets there, Donkey and the other fairytale creatures convince him to go back and save Fiona. When he gets there, he professes his love for Fiona. Just when Lord Farquaad is about to lock them away, a dragon bursts through the wall and uses her fire-breath to vanquish the tiny lord. Fiona is permanently transformed into an ogre, and she and Shrek return to the swamp and live happily ever after. 

This was a very fun show, complete with some hilarious one-liners and some amazing songs. This play was not only able to showcase the actors’ voices–such as Fiona’s in “I Know It’s Today” and the whole cast in “Freak Flag”–but their acting talent as well.  Directed by Mrs. Whitehurst, these kids have worked incredibly hard, with rehearsals starting in September taking place every Monday-Thursday, and it really shows. All the audience members I spoke to raved about it, with Sarah Wiederhold saying, “This play allowed all of the Middle School talent to shine through, which there is a lot of! They did such an incredible job, so I hope most all of you were able to come out and support them. It also showcased some amazing tech talent, with Nicolas Du Pont (sophomore) designing the lighting himself, and Astrid Skinner (senior), who controlled the projections. We also want to give a shout-out to Mrs. Viverette for helping with the props. And to Mrs. Whitehurst, a huge “thank you” goes out to you for putting on such an incredible show and helping these kids shine!