'Shrek' rave brings nostalgia and strobe lights to Roxian Theatre

Once upon a time — in 2001 — an animated children’s film called “Shrek” was released. It eventually spawned a trio of sequels (with a fourth currently in development), television shows, a Broadway musical, a slew of Internet memes and … a traveling rave.

“Shrek” was highly popular even at its release; it turned a profit of more than $200 million at the box office in its initial run. Its first sequel grossed almost a billion dollars worldwide. And thanks to the internet, “Shrek” lived on as a cultural phenomenon amongst Gen-Z.

Now, Shrek Rave gives those fans an opportunity to come out and party ogre-style. The most recent Pittsburgh event was last Friday night at the Roxian Theatre in McKees Rocks. And it was something.

“Not enough Shrek!” said Hannah Kaczmarczyk, 26, of Greene County, who was dressed in a pink-and-red costume meant to evoke the “Dragon” character from the film series. Her poofy skirt was dotted with tiny white lights.

This wasn’t her first Shrek Rave — she attended last year’s event at Stage AE as well. Shrek Raves happen all over the world, and several iterations have occurred in the Pittsburgh area over the past few years.

This love of “Shrek” is couched in the seemingly opposed ideas of ironic online humor and the mentality that “cool is dead.” The film itself contains a lot of satire about the Disney-fied fairy tale stories of the 1990s, so it is a perfect totem to be held up by younger millennials and older Gen Z people — especially when put through the filter of nihilistic, absurdist humor so emblematic of online communities among those age groups.

Kaczmarczyk, when asked what she loves about “Shrek,” said, “Shrek is love, Shrek is life,” referencing a decade-old meme that has gone from a weird joke in the depths of message boards to completely mainstream on social media.

So pairing “Shrek” themes with a big, fun dance party makes sense. The thematic elements of Friday night’s rave were not as deep as they could have been, but they were still present in an attempt to woo the ogre-loving crowd. The drinks menu included four themed cocktails, from the “Swamp Water” (vodka, lemonade and blue Curacao, giving it an electric greenish tinge) to the “Love’s True Form Cosmo” (a Cosmopolitan with lemon juice instead of lime). The “Lord Farquaad’s Revenge,” consisting of whiskey, apple, cranberry and lemon juice, was surprisingly tasty, if a bit sweet — and not particularly strong.

There was also a large screen behind the DJ onstage projecting a gallery of half a dozen Shrek animations. Donkey’s rotating head was particularly haunting.

The music interspersed in a few “Shrek”-related favorites. Early on, the DJ spun together Rihanna’s “We Found Love” with the Counting Crows’ “Accidentally In Love,” a hit from the soundtrack of “Shrek 2.” For the most part, it was standard dance club fare, mixing old-school bangers such as “Push It” by Salt-N-Pepa with late-aughts hits “Teenage Dream” by Katy Perry and “Don’t Trust Me” by 3OH!3. As the evening wore on, present-day pop and less recognizable electronic dance music took over. It was clear which demographic was being targeted.

The participants really brought the theme to life. A group of girls in their 20s with Shrek-ear headbands handed out green glow sticks to anyone they passed by. Couples dressed as the film’s titular ogre and his bride, Fiona, were popular in the crowd. Fairy Godmothers, Blind Mice and Pinocchios were also spotted. Kaczmarczyk and her friend, Casey Briggs, 26, of Fredericktown, were armed with “Shrek”-themed friendship bracelets, a longtime common practice at raves. Still, Briggs proclaimed, “The vibes are off.”

The dance floor disagreed. While some of the decked-out “Shrek” fanatics were standing around in front of the stage scrolling through Instagram, many waving arms spangled with glow sticks undulated under the frenetic spotlights.

For some, this was just a different kind of night out.

“It’s awesome, this is my second rave ever,” said Cole Schope, 26, of Chippewa. “It’s a great movie. It’s got adult humor and kids’ humor.”

That’s the key — for those who grew up with the all-ages jokes of “Shrek,” Friday night at the Roxian Theatre was a wave of nostalgia mixing their younger days with their adult interests. Like the Shrek Rave’s own website says, “It’s dumb, just come have fun!”