Shrek the Musical to open at Drury Lane next May

DreamWorks Theatricals and Neal Street Productions have just announced that Shrek the Musical will open at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in May 2011 with a press night on June 7th.  This follows Cameron Mackintosh’s announcement that his musical Oliver! which is currently running at Drury Lane is due to close on 8th January.

Shrek the Musical is based on the story and characters from William Steig's book and the Oscar-winning Dreamworks Animation feature film.

Shrek the Musical played on Broadway from December 2008 to January 2010 and was nominated for eight Tony Awards. The Anglo-American creative team is led by directors Jason Moore and Rob Ashford with David Lindsay-Abaire (Book and Lyrics), Jeanine Tesori (Music), Tim Hatley (Scenic, Costume and Puppet Design), Hugh Vanstone (Lighting Design), Peter Hylenski (Sound Design), and Josh Prince (Choreography).

They are now working on re-staging the American production with new songs and additional scenes. This new production is currently in rehearsal and will tour 60 cities in the USA starting this month.

The UK production will start rehearsals in London in early 2011. Casting, performance dates, and box office details will be released soon and tickets will go on sale on October 1st 2010.

Amanda Holden is one name that has been mooted for Princess Fiona (played in the film by Cameron Diaz).