Tag Archives: Daniel Buckley

“Eugenius” at The Other Palace

Here’s yet another irreverent musical, this time taking comic books and their creators as its subject, full of tongue-in-cheek fun and aspiring to cult status. A transfer to the Ambassadors Theatre was announced and cancelled just today. Let’s hope the breaking news is just a postponement to future success. The show is primed to do well by Ian Talbot’s admirably ambitious direction, which ensures that Ben Adams and Chris Wilkins’ piece impresses. There’s plenty of enjoyment to be had, even if Eugenius is a tame affair that too gently pokes fun at theatre and heroics: it’s competent, entertaining and only just short of super.

Reservations arise not just because the piece is derivative, although you will probably recognise a lot of other shows that have inspired it. Adam and Wilkins’ book is a bit messy and the humour tepid. There’s a coming-of-age story that’s whisked to Hollywood just as it’s settling down, with a clumsy competition device where our hero’s unpublished comic is to be turned into a film. Then there’s a half-developed struggle for integrity before the fictional world of ‘Tough Man’ collides with reality to provide us with moral lessons. None of this is bad, although the lyrics are strictly functional, but it’s Talbot who powers the show.

Christopher Ragland and Rob Houchen

Much is made of time and setting – America in 1988 – and the show cleverly cashes in on nostalgia. But the nudges to recollection are superficial, achieved by constantly throwing in references. There’s little effort to make the characters specific either. Their ages are a bit of puzzle and another niggle is ignoring how snobbish comic book geeks can be! It’s unbelievable that they would be so egalitarian with their references. Here it’s the performances that win out. Rob Houchen makes for an appealing lead as Eugene, likewise his love interest Janey and best friend Feris are engagingly performed by Laura Baldwin and Daniel Buckley. The whole cast gets the chance to shine with a lot of dual roles as Eugene’s fantasy connects with real life: Christopher Ragland and Simon Thomas both benefit.

It’s a shame that the love story in Eugenius is so predictable. Comics themselves have been challenging since before people started using the term heteronormative – so it’s odd to end up making fun of something more sophisticated than your own parody. The role of Janey is particularly unsatisfying, no matter how much irony is intended. Thankfully, when it comes to the most important thing – the music – Adams and Wilkins are on firmer ground. They can write a catchy tune and the score coheres well at several points. There’s a nice mix of pastiche and sincerity that offsets a lot of contrived moves. It may be a case of promise rather than something to rave about, but Eugenius deserves success.

Until 21 October 2018

www.eugeniusthemusical.com

Photos by Scott Rylander

“Christie in Love” at the King’s Head Theatre

This welcome revival of Howard Brenton’s 1969 play, about the serial killer who secreted eight victims at his home, 10 Rillington Place, is exceptional for its fearlessness. A police constable and detective uncover bodies and interrogate the creepily reserved John Christie in a play that’s frightening, bold and adventurous. Brenton casts a cynical eye on the establishment, incompetent and clichéd by turns, while his portrayal of the psychopath, including explicit sexual kinks, is unflinching.

Director Mary Franklin handles the eccentric text bravely. There are pauses aplenty and our first encounter with Christie, masked and masturbating, is truly bizarre. And Franklin secures three superb performances. Daniel Buckley plays the nervous young copper with a taste for nasty limericks, who impresses with his puppetry skills in a flashback scene that has a prostitute encountering Christie. Jake Curran is just as good playing the Inspector, a tricky part full of irony and repression that he makes thrilling. Murray Taylor takes the title role and is truly scary. Unafraid of making eye contact with the audience, he guarantees goose bumps, but this isn’t a shock-horror affair. Hugely committed, Taylor shows Christie as a part of society no matter how abhorrent his actions.

For all this – three of the finest performances you could wish for on a stage – the real star is designer Christopher Hone. With a giant newspaper-filled rectangular box performed on, in and around, this is a set full of surprises. There’s literally a balancing act for the performers, which adds a tension of its own, while the concept serves to focus attention and raise questions, just like the play itself.

Until 18 June 2016

www.kingsheadtheatrepub.co.uk

Photo by Chris Tribble