Shrek musical opens on Broadway

Shrek is based on the children's book by William Steig

A musical adaptation of the animated blockbuster Shrek has opened on Broadway in New York.

Tony-nominated actor Brian d'Arcy James plays the green ogre with a heart of gold, with Tony-winning actress Sutton Foster as Princess Fiona.

Stars including Cameron Diaz, who voices Fiona in the film franchise, Ben Stiller and Joan Rivers attended the show's opening performance.

A fourth Shrek film is scheduled to be released in 2010.

Dynamics and chemistry

Asked whether she'd consider portraying Fiona on stage, Diaz said: "No, absolutely not. What they do up there... is, to me, impossible. It's wonderful, though."

"It's great to see all of the actors playing it together because when we do it for the animated we never see each other," she said.

"We don't work with one another - we all record separately and then they put it all together so you don't really get the dynamics and chemistry that you get with other actors... it's a lot of fun to watch."

Shrek, based on the children's book by William Steig, is one of the most successful animated films of all time and tells the story of an ogre who falls in love.

Diaz will reprise her voice role in the fourth Shrek film, alongside Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy, who return as Shrek and Donkey respectively.