★★★★

“joyous and fun”

It’s a story that reminds us of our childhood in many ways. Although originally a 1956 novel by Dodie Smith, for many of us, our memories will be of when we first saw a version of the film. Well this show (adapted for the stage by Zinnie Harris and directed by Bill Buckhurst) certainly transports us back to our youth with a musical twist on the well-known and much loved adventure.

Possibly of most concern to people going to the show is a fairly obvious question. “How will they be able to pull it off?” One may think that the film couldn’t possibly translate to the stage and for understandable reason. The main characters are dogs and there are a lot (101!) of them. However, this element is probably the most masterful of the production. Throughout the performance, actors handle life-size puppets of dogs, fit with moveable legs, necks and mouths and with wagging tails. This was an incredibly ambitious undertaking, that could easily have come across as a lazy imitation. However, because of the authenticity of the enactment (and Jimmy Grimes’ puppet direction) one can easily look past that these are puppets and indulge the characters in what they are saying. Clearly, we are watching remarkable innovation from the puppet team (Mikayla Teodoro).

The show benefits from precise and clear choreography (Lucy Hind) throughout. David Woodhead’s set is stunning enhanced with clever lighting from James Whiteside. Actors who play the canine characters expertly multitask by singing (music and lyrics by David Hodge) and manoeuvring their puppets simultaneously. The characters of Pongo (Linford Johnson) and Perdi (Emma Thornett) are particularly impressive. It looks a particularly tiring performance for the actors, but the show maintains its energy remarkably through to the end.

Nevertheless, the standout performance comes from Sydnie Christmas as Cruella De Vil, for whom it is her first musical theatre performance since winning Britain’s Got Talent in 2024. Christmas is, above all else, a very convincing villain, as she kidnaps 99 dalmatians to try and use their fur. However, she takes the character to new levels, which we haven’t seen before, as she nails musical numbers one after another. It is a spellbinding performance from someone who will go on to lead countless West End productions.

The other star names in the production are Jeff Brazier and Aston Merrygold who play Casper and Jasper, Cruella’s nephews, or more like Cruella’s terrified obedient assistants. Their performances are more than adequate if not spectacular, not reaching the depths of sincerity that we see from Cruella. Even so, that shouldn’t be seen as a criticism of their performance, more that the strength of the show comes from the togetherness of the ensemble rather than a few star performances.

The show is joyous and fun, if not always effortlessly so. At times, jokes are forced such as: “Nobody makes a mug of Cruella De Vil, unless it’s sold as official merchandise.” Notwithstanding this, one couldn’t ask for much more from a family-friendly show with astonishing music, choreography and live interaction.

ANTHROPOLOGY at the Hampstead Theatre

★★★★

“some interesting twists and turns along the way”

Anthropology, Lauren Gunderson’s new play premiering at the Hampstead Theatre, is a convoluted tale about sibling love that attempts to transcend life as we presently know it. It begins as a tale about a missing woman, and her sister’s refusal to give up the search for her. Since sister Merril is a tech wizard specializing in artificial intelligence, it’s not long before A.I is employed as a tool to help Merril in her mission. But at the heart of Anthropology is an unnerving question: can artificial intelligence mimic humans so well that people begin to respond to them as though A.I was human? And even more chilling: that A.I might produce intellectual and emotional interactions that are somehow even more relatable than the humans they imitate?

Gunderson’s protagonist Merril and her sister Angie have endured a tough childhood marked by their mother’s descent into drug addiction. Merril stepped up as Angie’s parent when mother Brin no longer could, so it’s not surprising that Merril would continue searching for her sister when everyone else has given up. Merril’s grieving is so intense, however, that she turns to A.I not only as a way of trying to find clues about what happened to Angie, but also as a way of maintaining a relationship that she cannot bear to relinquish. A.I Angie, it turns out, is just as prickly and unsettling as the original, and part of the pleasure of Gunderson’s humorous script is watching Merril (played beautifully by MyAnna Buring) caught continually off guard by her digital sibling’s unerring ability to cut to the chase regarding Merril’s failed relationships with lover Raquel (Yolanda Kettle) and mother Brin (Abigail Thaw). There’s a lot more story packed into this tense 90 minute thriller of a plot, and some interesting twists and turns along the way. Ultimately, however, Anthropology is less about the success of artificial intelligence in predicting human behaviour. It is more a story about failed human relationships.

“ninety minutes is too short a time to explore such complex subject matter as artificial intelligence in the context of a family drama”

Anthropology begins encouragingly enough in a gleaming white box of a set, designed by Georgia Lowe, sparsely populated by a podium, a screen, and two open lap tops on the floor. MyAnna Buring as Merril gives an intriguing account of her search for Angie by using A.I to sift through her sister’s digital footprint, looking for clues. Merril is very good at her work, and soon digital Angie has become video Angie, confidently predicting that human Angie may still be alive. There is, however, a price to pay. Merril will have to repair her relationships with Raquel and Brin in order to know for sure. It’s a great set up, and suggests all sorts of directions for the plot to go. The production is further enhanced by a medley of tech inspired lighting (James Whiteside), video design (Daniel Denton) and back projections, plus music and sound design (Max Pappenheim). But what begins promisingly as an exploration of artificial intelligence as solace for grieving (a subject also explored by pioneering sci-fi writer Isaac Asimov), ends up in Anthropology as yet another tale of absent parents and sibling rivalry. Even the wit and sparkle of Gunderson’s dialogue cannot quite disguise the recognition that this is pretty familiar territory, plot wise.

In fairness, ninety minutes is too short a time to explore such complex subject matter as artificial intelligence in the context of a family drama. Anthropology is a very American play; the all female cast treads all too familiar territory in such intimate settings. For all Merril’s high tech bravado, she is still fettered by the assumption that her life and career, are always at the mercy of relationship repair and unmet expectations regarding parenthood. It’s a brave attempt on Gunderson’s part to try to create a cutting edge drama about cutting edge technology. But the results are predictable, given the shortcomings of the humans (still) in charge.

101 DALMATIANS THE MUSICAL

Eventim Apollo

★★★★

“joyous and fun”

101 DALMATIANS THE MUSICAL

Eventim Apollo

Reviewed on 24th July 2025

by Luke Goscomb

Photography by Johan Persson

Recently reviewed by Luke:

101 DALMATIANS

101 DALMATIANS

101 DALMATIANS

ANTHROPOLOGY at the Hampstead Theatre

★★★★

“some interesting twists and turns along the way”

“ninety minutes is too short a time to explore such complex subject matter as artificial intelligence in the context of a family drama”

ANTHROPOLOGY at the Hampstead Theatre

Reviewed on 18th September 2023

by Dominica Plummer

Photography by The Other Richard

Previously reviewed at this venue:

Anthropology

Anthropology

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