Normally I enter most productions, with no preconceptions. Often I don’t know the cast, production company and sometimes even the plot. I like going in blind it makes things more exciting. But after seeing Mischief Theatre’s legendary production of The Play That Goes Wrong (twice) and loving it so much, I had high expectations.
It did certainly have a tough act to follow and although it didn’t match The Play That Goes Wrong it was still a strong production and the cast were excellent.
The energy created is infectious and their slickness and pinpoint perfect comedic timing is faultless. Sometimes things get a little frantic but this just adds to the hilarity of it all.
The jokes really are a laugh a minute, especially when things pick up the pace in the second act. The set up is slower that I would have wanted but it is all worth it when things quickly escalate into mayhem, something Mischief Theatre does brilliantly.
All the cast were fantastic, and that’s not a cop out sentence. Each were as strong and reliable as the next but I particularly enjoyed David Coomber as Neil Cooper and Jon Trenchard as Warren Slax. Their physical comedy and characterisation shone against the already shining cast.
They regularly used creative and original storytelling techniques which made the audience audibly gasp. Their use props is refreshing as they have thought about different ways to use props several times, such as phone boxes for guitars and transforming birds to fish. One particular scene in which you see the room from a birds eye view is especially clever as it lets gravity create the jokes. Sounds strange but if you’ve seen it you’ll know what I mean!
It may not have matched The Play That Goes Wrong but this production still ticks all the right boxes and is a brilliant and funny production.