DEATH NOTE – THE MUSICAL IN CONCERT at the London Palladium

★★★★

“When the ensemble cast sing together the effect is mesmerising”

It is twenty years since “Death Note” stormed into the public consciousness, originally serialised in weekly instalments in Shõnen Jump, Japan’s most popular and iconic Manga magazine. I have to confess that this global phenomenon passed me by, but I humbly accept being in a minority bracket, judging by the crowds dressed in unconcealed enthusiasm at the London Palladium. The story was originally a bit of a risk for its publishers, straying from the tried-and-tested formula of intense action catering to an audience of mainly adolescent males. But it worked, and having been adapted into various media, including a US produced Netflix film, video and card-trading games and various sequels, the musical adaptation is the next obvious step.

Composer Frank Wildhorn shared my ignorance (I prefer innocence) of the Manga world when asked to turn it into a musical, but you’d never think it. Spurred on by his son who urged him to “drop everything and do this – because it will make you cool”, Wildhorn immersed himself in the source material. The end product is a score that redefines the word ‘cool’. A combination of electronica rock with an orchestral strength; it is both triumphant but also a lamentation. Bombastic but never overpowering, it reflects the atmospheric setting with a dark energy. Despite the subtle Japanese influences (perhaps too subtle), the production has the overall feel of an American rock concept album.

The concept of “Death Note” is fantastical, yet serious. High-school prodigy Light Yagami (Joaquin Pedro Valdes) is dismayed by the failures of the justice system. Meanwhile, two ‘Shinigami’ – gods of death from an otherworldly, unspecified dimension – watch over and decide, for fun, to drop the eponymous ‘death note’ into the human world. Light is the one who picks it up, thereby being granted the supernatural power to kill anyone whose name he writes in the pages of the book. Far from being horrified at the prospect, he immediately grasps the opportunity to use it to wipe out anyone he deems immoral. The aim is to create a crime-free society. From this very dubious precedent, what ensues is a cat-and-mouse psychological thriller that explores the quite weighty subject of justice and vigilantism. Light’s self-belief blinds him, and his acolytes, to the supposition that isn’t he just as murderous as his victims? “Death Note” shies away from instructing us which way to think, though the Shakespearian ending gives a couple of nudges.

Being unfamiliar with the ‘Manga’ genre and its iconography and terminology is not necessarily a bar to the intricacies of the plot, although the second act requires you to be slightly more on your toes. The characters are well formed, even if occupying the same two dimensions of the original animation. Billed as a musical in concert, the dialogue is subsequently sparse, with Jack Murphy’s lyrics guiding us through the narrative. Jason Howland’s sumptuous orchestration is given full justice by Musical Director Chris Ma’s sixteen-piece band. It is a sonic binge, yet the vocal performances cut through with a clarity that displays the talent within the cast. When the ensemble cast sing together the effect is mesmerising, and each of the seven lead cast members has their moment to shine. Francis Mayli McCann, as Misa – the rock superstar in awe of Light’s misplaced taste for vengeance, has strength and versatility matched by pretty much everyone else. The richness of Adam Pascal’s Ryuk (the spirit – Shinigami – who sets it all in motion by dropping the death note into the world) is complemented beautifully by Aimie Atkinson’s Rem – the other Shinigami. Atkinson’s and McCann’s duet that opens Act Two is a moment that lingers long after curtain call.

Dean John Wilson, as Light’s nemesis – the enigmatic detective known simply as L, has the richest pickings of the dialogue, conveying some of the humour and dynamism that is lacking in the show. One presumes Ivan Menchell’s book has been cut back for the concert version. The full text would allow for more light and shade, and the implicit humour and pathos would be given a longer rein. There is a noticeable emotional detachment, and consequently there is nobody we are rooting for.

But for pure musical rapture and spectacle, this show is second to none. Every pitch perfect note resonates through the vast auditorium of the Palladium. It is monumental and memorable; but also sold out. I wouldn’t leave it long, though, to book for its transfer to the Lyric, Shaftesbury Avenue in September. Although something tells me that “Death Note” is in for a long life.