by Alex Rodriguez, JBHS Senior

On April 26, the middle school and high school band put on a performance for parents and students to see. Followed the performance, the Jo Byrns High School Drama class performed the play, Shrek Jr: The Musical. The play was completely managed by students along with a lot of help from their teacher, Mrs. Jennie Schmittou. The role of Shrek was acted by Cara Daniels, Donkey's role was acted by Chris Woelk, Princess Fiona was acted by Lillian Mays, and Lord Farquad was acted by Taylor Stuard. We asked Mrs. Schmittou her reason for choosing this play and she told us, "The reason we decided to perform Shrek Jr: The Musical is because it relates to high school students. The play Shrek is all about accepting yourself for you and that you shouldn’t worrying about having to fit in." One student quoted, "This musical teaches you can't judge a book by its cover; there is more to people that what you see on the outside." Another student quoted, "Don't care about what people think about you. That is your best policy."

The play follows a similar plot to the film version of Shrek, with many familiar characters: once upon a time, there was an ogre named Shrek who lived in a swamp. Lord Farquad, a king wannabe, forces fairytale creatures into Shrek's swamp. Shrek courageously journeys to help get his home back. On his journey, he picks up a donkey as a best friend, falls in loves with a cursed and beautiful princess, then courageously wins back his home.

The play was performed at 7:00 PM on Apri 26 for students and parents to watch. On May 3rd, the Drama class will be performing all day for the middle school and high school students to see. The theatre class wants to give a big thanks to Mrs. Jennie Schmittou and their fellow peers for working hard all year long and performing an amazing play.