Character guide
Princess Fiona
from Shrek The Musical
Princess Fiona is a lead character in Shrek The Musical, the 2008 Broadway show adapted from the popular animated film, with music by Jeanine Tesori.
- Show
- Shrek The Musical
- Broadway premiere
- 2008
- Role
- Lead
- Music by
- Jeanine Tesori
Princess Fiona: from the film to Broadway
Broadway compared with the 2001 DreamWorks film
On stage, Fiona is three people. The musical introduces her with I Know It's Today, sung by Young Fiona, Teen Fiona, and the grown Fiona as she waits in her tower through childhood, adolescence, and adulthood without losing faith in her fairy tales. Cameron Diaz voiced a single Fiona in the 2001 DreamWorks film.
Sutton Foster originated the role on Broadway in 2008 and earned a Tony nomination, and Amanda Holden played Fiona in the West End. The stage version also gives her comic showcases of her own, including Morning Person, in which she helps the Pied Piper with his rat-charming, and This Is How a Dream Comes True, a duet with Dragon.
Who is Princess Fiona?
Fiona has spent years locked away in a tower awaiting rescue, only to discover that the ogre who frees her is far more compatible with her true self than the prince she was promised to. Her character playfully upends classic princess tropes, carrying a secret that reshapes how the audience sees fairy tale expectations around beauty, love, and rescue.
Her arc runs alongside Shrek's, and the two characters mirror each other as they each learn to embrace who they really are rather than who the world expects them to be.
Playing Fiona on stage
Fiona is a lead role that demands comic versatility, athletic physical comedy, and a strong singing voice capable of handling both tender ballads and big, energetic numbers. The part rewards a performer who can shift confidently between princess-perfect poise and looser, more grounded comedy as Fiona's true personality emerges.
Audiences respond to Fiona because she is funnier, tougher, and more self-aware than the passive princess archetype she initially appears to be, making her one of the more satisfying female leads in family musical theater.
Princess Fiona: frequently asked questions
What show is Princess Fiona from?
Princess Fiona appears in Shrek The Musical, which premiered on Broadway in 2008.
Is Princess Fiona a lead or supporting role?
Princess Fiona is a lead role opposite Shrek.
Who wrote the music for Shrek The Musical?
The score was composed by Jeanine Tesori.
Think you can name today's mystery character in eight guesses?
Play today's Character GuesserMore characters from Shrek The Musical
More characters with music by Jeanine Tesori
Shrek The Musical show guideMusical theatre characters A to Z