★★★★

“Neil Hurst and Jodie Prenger’s writing is wild and lewd but is equally sharp, and intelligently plays with words”

If you’ve been in the news this year, or are a showbiz personality of any sort, or even merely a major player in a current West End musical, you should be advised to steer clear of “A Very Very Bad Cinderella”. Unless you’re some sort of masochist. None of the above escapes the scattershot onslaught of bawdy jokes and devil-may-care references that are loaded into this most unseasonal of seasonal pantomimes. Thrown out into the audience like sweets, not everyone will catch the in-jokes, and a great many go over our heads.

The musical theatre world is well and truly ransacked. The main casualty that lies in its wake is political correctness. Despite the obligatory use of a snow machine at this time of year, this is not a show for snowflakes. It doesn’t take itself seriously, and the audience are invited (no – make that ‘forced’) to follow suit. To say that this is an ‘alternative’ take on ‘Cinderella’ is a bit of an understatement. Okay, it’s hanging onto the basic plotline for dear life, and the stock characters are there – we have Cinderella, of course, and Buttons and Prince Charming. But gone are the Disney, cutesy names for the ‘Ugly Sisters’; instead, we have Fanny and Vajayjay. You can see where this is going now?

May Tether plays Cinderella, and like the show’s title itself, is channelling a certain other Cinderella who also acquired the prefix ‘bad’. The whole show is a parody, and Tether lampoons with affection and with tongue in cheek. Although the script advocates that tongues are destined for rather more unsavoury parts of the anatomy. Yes, it is that sort of show. That is not a dig, however. Neil Hurst and Jodie Prenger’s writing is wild and lewd but is equally sharp, and intelligently plays with words. We are occasionally reminded of the likes of the Two Ronnies, for example, particularly during a very clever soliloquy in which the titles of every well-known musical are strung together to form a witty and breathless anecdote.

Keanna Bloomfield switches between Buttons and Prince Charming, drawing attention to the writers’ neglect in allowing for costume changes. Budgetary constraints and the producers’ limitations and lack of foresight are also frequently shared with the audience. Maybe spread a little too thin, but the comedy is thickened if you are acquainted with the behind-the-scenes machinations of theatre in all its variety. Genres are crossed with gay abandon as the ‘Ugly Sisters’ lead us headlong into the world of Cabaret and Drag. A captivating duo they are the wicked Queens of the night. Veronica Green’s Fanny is deliciously spicy (I never, ever thought I’d be writing that in a review). Matched by Imelda Warren-Green’s pouting, sourpuss Vajayjay (come on now, concentrate!), the self-declared ‘fab-u-lous’ pair are a comic act that draw the biggest laughs. If the show were to be streamed for general release you wouldn’t catch much of what is said due to the number of censoring beeps required.

There is a narrative thread, just in case we can’t keep up, provided by an uncredited, on-screen presence whose deadpan delivery alludes to the show being ‘very very bad’ indeed. Yes – it is ‘bad’ and ‘wicked’ and ‘sick’. But these are all huge compliments if you’re referring to the urban dictionary. It is a very very fun night out. Prepare to be offended and delighted in equal measure. Oh, and be wary of where you sit, unless the idea of wearing a face mask pulled out from Fanny’s undergarments appeals to you. There – that should get you scrolling for the booking page if nothing else.

TROMPE L’OEIL at the The Other Palace

★★★

“an intriguing concept and one that will probably divide audiences, and lead to some interesting discussions”

It’s a tall order to expect an audience, while listening to a show’s musical number, to appreciate that certain lyrics are anagrams of the following line. Or that certain letters within those lyrics, if traced onto a sheet of paper, form a picture. The programme does devote a few pages of instructions for this lexical trickery, and often the words are projected high onto the back wall, but rather than being drawn into this distraction, the overall tendency is to just let it go over our heads. Nevertheless, at least we now know what an acrostic, or a lipogram is (google it).

The title suggests that all is not what it seems, and indeed there is an exaggerated surreal quality to Henry Parkman Biggs’ “Trompe L’oeil”. And like the artists it professes to emulate (Dali, Magritte, Escher…) there is more to see the longer you look. But rather than being given the freedom to make our own interpretations of the abstract mayhem, the message is very clear and one sided. We know where Biggs’ sympathies lie, even if we are never sure what story he is trying to tell.

There are many strands to the show – two that predominate. We have the rise and fall of Donald Trump, interwoven with what the poster tagline describes as ‘a queer love story’. The two are connected but in the same way that bedding plants and weeds might smother each other if left unattended. At the top of the show, Trump makes a deal with Vladimir Putin, after which Putin quite literally has Trump by the balls. Putin orchestrates Trump’s rise to power but only on the condition he can attach a remote-controlled clamp to his genitals which he tightens every time Trump strays away from his master plan. Both characters are larger than life and Sarah Louise Hughes’ Bond villain Putin (referred to as ‘The Imitator’) spars well with Emer Dineen’s cartoon buffoon Trump. Meanwhile two lovebirds Rip (a Republican in denial, played by Alex Wadham) and staunch Democrat Demi (Dominic Booth) eke out a ‘will-they-won’t-they’ scenario, complicated by the fact that Rip is implausibly unaware of Demi’s true gender.

“The ambition has to be admired, and the pace is frenetic, anarchic and chaotic”

Less a musical, more of a song cycle, the musical numbers intermix its influences, from cabaret to rap, to disposable pop. Delivered with high energy and soaring skill by the talented, fine-voiced ensemble they are catchy and instantly familiar. Although there is a tenuous thread connecting them, each number could be a stand-alone work in itself; although in a live setting we haven’t the time or inclination to analyse and pore over the intricacies. Like the overall concept, it is all just too clever for its own good and a touch self-indulgent.

The ambition has to be admired, and the pace is frenetic, anarchic and chaotic. The cast rise to the physical and vocal challenges with ease. It is larger than life, and totally bonkers. Yet despite the high entertainment value we are left with little to grip on to. The wider appeal is therefore constricted, which is a shame as there are some gems of observation, humour and satire to be found. But it is difficult to establish what this piece is trying to achieve. And it is a bit of a contradiction: it is bold, brash and funny but at the same time requires prior knowledge of the author’s writing technique. In some ways it appears progressive, yet it closes with the rather simplistic message that “we can disagree peacefully”.

The allusions to illusion in “Trompe L’oeil” are misleading – the show doesn’t quite match its title. But it is an intriguing concept and one that will probably divide audiences, and lead to some interesting discussions. Let’s hope they can ‘disagree peacefully’.

Tag Archives: Jack Weir

A Very Very Bad Cinderella

★★★★

The Other Palace

A VERY VERY BAD CINDERELLA at The Other Palace

★★★★

“Neil Hurst and Jodie Prenger’s writing is wild and lewd but is equally sharp, and intelligently plays with words”

A VERY VERY BAD CINDERELLA at The Other Palace

Reviewed on 6th December 2023

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Danny Kaan

Previously reviewed at this venue:

Trompe L’Oeil | ★★★ | September 2023

Dom – The Play | ★★★★ | February 2023

Ghosted – Another F**king Christmas Carol | ★★★★★ | December 2022

Glory Ride | ★★★ | November 2022

Millennials | ★★★ | July 2022

A Very Very Bad Cinderella

A Very Very Bad Cinderella

Click here to see our Recommended Shows page

Trompe L’Oeil

★★★

The Other Palace

TROMPE L’OEIL at the The Other Palace

★★★

“an intriguing concept and one that will probably divide audiences, and lead to some interesting discussions”

“The ambition has to be admired, and the pace is frenetic, anarchic and chaotic”