(seen at the afternoon performance on 24th February 2024)
The monkey was less than enamoured with the original London incarnation of this show at the Olivier Theatre in November 2018. A garbled story over-stretched and lacking punch in either lyric or music was its conclusion back then.
Six years on, in the far smaller Lyric Theatre and trailing Broadway glory, this re-written and more tightly focussed version is almost unrecognisable.
Young Orpheus (Simon Oskarsson, covering for absent Donal Finn) is an ambitious waiter in New Orleans, songwriter who subconsciously resurrects an ancient tune - according to our hot narrator Hermes (Melanie La Barrie).
Not yet renamed Evri, but mother – slipping into panto Fairy Godmother as she speaks always in rhyme – and guide to a world in which Greek myth and the Jazz era collide. Swinging with style, her pacey opening number connects, so that she never loses the audience thereafter.
Adopting a railroad synonym for Depression years USA, we meet lost child Eurydice (Grace Hodgett Young) with whom Orpheus is smitten. Hodgett Young makes it two hits in a row following her unforgettable performance in “Sunset Boulevard” last autumn. Her more interesting songs and strong vocal aid Oskarsson to build his lesser written role into a credible couple.
From the underworld, Zachary James and Gloria Onitiri as Hades and Persephone dominate proceedings as they should. He is devious, evil and has a seductive bluster for which nobody can blame Eurydice for falling.
Already trapped, Onitiri’s Persephone makes the most of her few months of freedom with a trademark show-stopping presence whenever required.
Adding a trio of Fates and chorus of workers, the small stage is filled with a buzz dissipated on the first outing in a far bigger auditorium. Director Rachel Chavkin is able to explain Greek mythology to a reluctant monkey, and hold its interest, a victory in itself.
Her cast land “Road to Hell,” “Wedding Song,” “Way Down Hadestown” and “Why We Build The Wall” with impact, yet “Flowers” which the monkey enjoyed last time seemed somehow less in the “11 O’Clock number” position at the start of act two.
And there lies the problems the monkey still has with the show. The first half has a few longueurs, the second act seems almost redundant halfway through. It takes too long, and seems to jump something in Hades / Persephone’s relationship before the final challenge to the imprisoned young lovers is revealed. Once there, “Doubt Comes In” is a long sequence yielding little result.
David Neumann’s choreography is constrained by the size of the stage, and feels derivative in a constant pattern of circles. A peculiar single scene change – the side platforms sliding outwards – seems redundant in Rachel Hauck’s chilled Southern State set design, which, with Bradley King’s dappled light and Michael Krass’s careful costumes, meld effectively the mortal and immortal storylines visually.
There is a saying that ‘everything old is new again,’ and this show proves the point. An ancient story of self-obsession and venal love, grand gestures and poor choices made on shallow, seductive promises are in tune with our era – and explain why the show has grown a cult following among young musical theatre fans who identify with the emotions on display.
Not a show that the monkey itself relates to on the same level, but it is an ensemble effort offering strong performances, pleasing visuals and a taste of something slightly different - classical and contemporary - to the West End musical theatre scene.
