High school drops sponsorship but Pride flags remain in homegrown staging of popular musical

Let your freak flag fly … just not your Pride flags.

That was the message for the cast of a local stage production of “Shrek the Musical” this week.

The 2008 Tony Award-winning stage adaptation of the 2001 hit film “Shrek” is currently being presented by Parker Arts in partnership with a local theater company called Sasquatch Productions. The musical opened Jan. 16 at the Parker Schoolhouse Theatre and is scheduled to run through Feb. 8.

The musical has long been celebrated as an inclusive family story because it champions themes of self-acceptance, celebrates diversity and challenges traditional beauty standards through its “let your freak flag fly” anthem, which is delivered in the climactic song.

After the opening weekend of performances, though, Parker Arts received “a variety of complaints regarding one of the musical numbers,” the organization said in a statement attributed to the Town of Parker and posted to social media.

The complaints were focused on the inclusion of Pride flags – eight-colored rainbow flags that symbolize support for the LGBTQ+ community – during the “Freak Flag” song.

Watch the official trailer for Parker Arts’ ‘Shek’

“Shrek” director Kelly McAllister said Carrie Glassburn, Cultural Director of the city-run Parker Arts, called him Tuesday to tell him, ‘We’ve gotten an inordinate amount of people complaining about the flags through emails and texts and nasty reviews on Google – and is there any way we could adjust that?’” he said. “She asked us to consider replacing the Pride flags with single-colored flags instead, which was just very disheartening.

“It seems just very logical to me that we’re going to have Pride flags during a song called ‘Let Your Freak Flag Fly.’ I’ve always been taught that the rainbow flag is inclusive of everyone. That’s literally what the song is about.”

One representative complaint on Facebook – far outnumbered by messages of support for the cast, read: “‘Shrek’ is based on a children’s movie, and families expect it to be in line with the original source material. No flags celebrating anyone’s sexuality are appropriate in a family friendly show.”

The cast was told of the controversy when they reported to the theater for Friday’s performance. The Town of Parker’s request, actor Lucas Barta said in a video statement, “weighed heavily on the entire company. It felt lonely, it felt sad, and it felt like it was something where we as artists were no longer allowed to express ourselves and our individuality.”

The actors, said McAllister, “seriously considered not going on with the show” if the Town’s request turned into a demand – which did not happen, the Parker Arts statement emphasizes. “We recognize that this has raised strong feelings across the community,” it went on to say while declaring Parker Arts was officially taking a neutral stance on the matter.

Facebook user Sam Devant responded to that point, saying: “When creative expression is flagged as controversial only after a specific group is offended, that is not neutrality. That is accommodation.”

The show’s approved official trailer, which is posted to YouTube, briefly shows Pride flags being waved.

How real was the possibility that the rest of the run would be canceled? “It felt pretty real last night,” McAllister said.

“We couldn’t in good conscience continue to do the show in a restricted way,” Barta said, “because doing a story that’s supposed to be all about and love and community and embracing who you are while having to cut a big moment of representation for people who have been marginalized and discriminated against … not only felt wrong for all of us, but felt very antithetical to the whole point of the story we were telling.”

Still, the cast decided to go on with Friday’s sold-out performance. But when it came time to sing “Freak Flag,” the cast stopped the show to address the audience directly. Actor Bekah Lynn Broas, who plays the character who leads that song, told the audience “that we, as a cast, respectfully, and peacefully, and with fire in our eyes, protest this request. We resist.”

The actors then performed the song, complete with the Pride flags. The crowd can be seen in posted videos largely cheering in support. But there were immediate consequences.

When this production was initially announced, Denver Lutheran High School was listed as a fiscal sponsor of the show, both in a press release and on the Parker Arts website. By 5 p.m. Saturday night, any mention of Lutheran had been removed from the website.

The Parker Arts statement emphasized that Sasquatch is an independent contractor, and that the Town of Parker only provides the venue. “The production companies (Sasquatch) are responsible for the staff, crew, set design, costumes, and, ultimately, the creative direction of the show,” the statement said. “The Town is not involved in the creative aspects or visions of the shows where it acts only as a presenter. As such, the Town does not take a position on either the creative expression or the concerns that were raised.”

Glassburn told the Denver Gazette she was unable to respond to any further questions, including the number and overall tenor of the complaints received, as well as the fiscal amount of Lutheran High School’s sponsorship. Attempts to reach several officials at Lutheran on Saturday were deferred to Executive Director Dan Gehrke, who had not responded by press time (but this report will be updated if he does).

Parker Arts has an inclusivity statement on its web site that says: “We believe that the arts have the power to inspire social change. In pursuing this vision, Parker Arts seeks to manage our programs and organizational culture in a manner that embraces welcomeness and inclusion. We resolve to create a space where all people feel heard and respected. We endeavor to create an environment that is welcoming to our artists, patrons and staff. We aim to challenge long-held beliefs and assumptions and explore new, uncharted areas in our programming.”

While the exact number of times “Shrek the Musical” has been staged by theater companies around the country is not publicly tracked, it remains one of the most frequently produced musicals in the country. In 2014, it was the most-produced show at all U.S. high schools.

So why is this bubbling up now, 18 years after this story was first introduced to theatergoers? The controversy highlights broader societal divisions and the challenges of balancing creative expression with individual ideologies.

“I think that right now, as evidenced by what happened in Minneapolis yet again today, we’re very divided,” McAllister said. “And I think that a lot of people are looking for other people to blame – immigrants. LGBTQ, you name it.”

The bottom line: “The show’s going on,” McAllister said. “And we’re keeping it as is.”

John Moore is the Denver Gazette’s Senior Arts Journalist. Email him at john.moore@denvergazette.com.