MIDWYNTAR - REVIEW - OLD RED LION THEATRE

I don’t think either Jacob Lovick or Jack Robertson, the creative foundation of Medium Rare Productions, would object in the slightest to my describing their curdled pantomime as batshit crazy. In fact, the statement would most likely tickle and satisfy them to no end. This festive confection with a barbed kick is an awkward meet-the-parents scenario that pushes into the realm of a baroque nightmare. Nodding to Ari Aster’s unsettling folk-horror film Midsommar in which a group of friends run afoul of a pagan cult at a midsummer festival, this production leans much more towards the comic grotesque and a healthy dose of absurdity.

Po (an increasingly bemused Eleanor Rattenbury) has accompanied girlfriend Rowan (an initially sympathetic, growing-more-distant Megan Jarvie) home to her isolated Dorset hamlet to spend the holidays with Rowan’s family. This is the first Christmas spent away from her own mother. She is enthusiastically welcomed by mom Fran (a gale-force Diane Axford), creeping-around-the-fringes cousin Adrian (Derek Mitchell oozing a beguiling mix of convivial debauchery and abject desperation) and Rowan’s father, the seemingly addled patriarch, prone to inappropriate outbursts, continually fussing with mechanics. He greets Po with blood on his hands, fresh from the kitchen.

There is something slightly sinister and off in the way in which the family coos and purrs over Po, calling her “perfect”, like a specimen ripe for plucking. Aggressive and regular offers of wine and biscuits are made, as if to prepare her. There is an inordinate appreciation of her stance on climate change and the fact she has never been with a man. An urn containing the ashes of recently-departed nonna, prominently displayed, is a source of building anxiety and tension. Her toilet chair sits in a corner of the room, an uncomfortable, perplexing presence. The family insists that the olden ways and customs are quite alive and respected in this small corner of the world. The audience can feel the wider universe shrinking away, more and more remote, as the play advances , one of the greatest strengths of the piece. Po is progressively imperilled, as the stakes raise and the scope collapses. Environment becomes inescapable prison.

Amidst the pervading queasy, high-strung comedy, a few moments of truly effective creepiness are achieved, especially a sequence with a light blinking on and off and a sudden apparition, produced with the simplest of theatrical means. Credit Rattenbury with the alacrity to be the subject of some especially horrific behaviour and icky action in the latter stages.

Opening night jitters led to some clustered instances of the actors stepping over each other’s lines, which actually in the most overheated moments worked to the advantage of the material, emotions at pique leading to a squall of voices, all clattering at once. Scene changes didn’t always proceed smoothly, with a few stumbles and props kicked in the rush. Much was required in the blackouts (Rattenbury and Jarvie must change entire wardrobes at one point on stage), the greatest being a sofa bed that had to be adjusted between functions nearly every scene, an enormous undertaking. All of these issues will more than likely even out during the course of the run.

The silliness and chaos sometimes threaten to overwhelm the material, railroading the subtler dread and alarm present in the quieter moments and the pitch-black spirit slithering underneath. Yet for the most part, with such an ambitious confluence of tonal ranges embedded in the script, the balance achieved is admirable. Ambiguity reigns in the finale as to which party triumphs, who is more the master of wile & guile.

Non-traditionalists, your Christmas show has arrived.

{🎟 AD: PR Invite – Tickets gifted in exchange for an honest review}

FRANKIE GOES TO BOLLYWOOD – REVIEW – HOME MANCHESTER
by Jennifer Roberts
Frankie Goes To Bollywood is a Bollywood-inspired musical from Rifco Theatre Company. With songs by Niraj Chag and Tasha Taylor Johnson and a book by Artistic Director Pravesh Kumar, the show is presented by Rifco, Watford Palace Theatre and HOME Manchester and tours through the UK this summer. After her mother’s passing when she was young, Frankie (Laila Zaidi) takes comfort in watching the Bollywood classic films that played through her childhood. After a chance meeting with up-and-coming director Prem (Navin Kundra) at the cinema she works at with her cousin Goldy (Katie Stasi), Frankie is thrust into the searing heat … More FRANKIE GOES TO BOLLYWOOD – REVIEW – HOME MANCHESTER
BALLET BLACK – REVIEW – BARBICAN
by Anuli Changa
My childhood memories of ballet shoes: pink, always pink. As Isabela Coracy begins to create the first moments of the show, I am staring at her brown pointe shoes, their existence is revolutionary. In fact, Ballet Black collaborated with Freed of London, to bring us the UK’s first pointe shoes inclusive of ‘Black, Asian, and mixed race skin tones’. Founder, Artistic Director and CEO Cassa Pancho continues to ensure that Ballet Black creates and embodies change, not just on stage but in the ballet world and beyond. Ballet Black: Heroes presents two creations, If At First (Sophie Laplane) and The Waiting Game (Mthuthuzeli November). One is very good, … More BALLET BLACK – REVIEW – BARBICAN
SONG OF SONGS – REVIEW – PARK THEATRE
by Mailí Ní Ghormáin
The Biblical book Song of Songs stands out; unashamedly erotic, for women as well as men, it has long been a subject of controversy, and it is this book that writer, director and lead performer Ofra Daniel takes as the subject of her musical. First performed in Daniel’s home of San Francisco in 2017, this run at the Park Theatre marks the musical’s first visit to London. It is difficult not to be thrilled by the world presented in A Song of Songs. The soundscape is one of klezmer music and infectious rhythms, composed by Daniel and Lior Ben-Hur with collaborators Ali Paris … More SONG OF SONGS – REVIEW – PARK THEATRE
SLEUTH – REVIEW – RICHMOND THEATRE
by Mailí Ní Ghormáin
Who’s afraid of Stephen Sondheim? I certainly would have been, having seen this show. Playwright Anthony Shaffer’s original title, an homage to the Broadway composer and puzzle obsessive, was changed to Sleuth before the play’s 1970 premiere, whereupon it won the Tony for best play, and has since been adapted for screen by both Joseph L. Mankiewicz and Harold Pinter. It is certainly an auspicious beginning, and it is a delight to see that fifty years on, this clever play can still stay a step ahead of its audience. The play opens with Andrew (Todd Boyce), a writer of detective fiction, delivering … More SLEUTH – REVIEW – RICHMOND THEATRE
JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR – REVIEW – NEW WIMBLEDON THEATRE
by Anne Reimers
Jesus Christ Superstar reimagines the biblical story of Jesus’ last days through a contemporary lens, portraying him as a rockstar figure navigating betrayal, redemption, and finally crucifixion. At the New Wimbledon Theatre, this iconic musical comes to life with electrifying energy and innovative staging. Fans of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, the dynamic duo of England’s musical theatre scene, will recognise the typical elements of their work; and they are as electrifying as ever. The rock score is performed by a mainly hidden live band, filling the theatre with a pulsating sound. The observant audience member can spot the guitar … More JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR – REVIEW – NEW WIMBLEDON THEATRE