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Murder, She Didn’t Write – 3 Stars

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Murder

Murder, She Didn’t Write

Leicester Square Theatre

Reviewed – 25th February 2018

★★★

“a unique show that is filled with mayhem and mischief”

 

A classic whodunnit is never boring, and when it’s completely improvised and the audience get to take part, it’s twice as fun. Degrees of Error theatre company present a unique show that is filled with mayhem and mischief, and leaves the audience in stitches. Despite being put under pressure to deliver a performance that meets the audience’s expectations, this talented cast still portrayed a very funny and entertaining performance, (even if the audience suggestions were quite crude).

Stephen Clements did an excellent job at welcoming the audience and making us really feel part of this murder mystery. An audience member then decided that the murder would take place at a Hen Party, and the weapon that was used to kill the victim would be a wet tea towel. Slightly bizarre, but nevertheless the cast were able to pull off some hilarious sketches. A particular favourite of mine was when Peter Baker (who played the excited husband to be) had to create a poem about hens, chickens and women. This was extremely funny, purely because none of it made any sense. Produced by the same company, Something for the Weekend, the show reminded me of, ‘Showstopper! The improvised musical,’ except ‘Murder, She Didn’t Write,’ replaced songs with poems about hens.

Improvising is a truly difficult skill and I appreciate that it’s a lot of hard work, but occasionally I felt that the cast were getting too caught up in the whole chicken side of things, and were drifting away from the main plot. Peter Baker worked hard at moving the narrative forward, but the same couldn’t be said for the rest of the cast. He was the only one determined to find out who killed his fiancée, Violet Violet.

Poor decision choices from Rachael Lane also started to make this show lose its momentum. At first she entered the stage with a tall posture, delivering her lines with a very impressive RP accent. However, the second time she entered the stage she was hunched over, and spoke with a rather odd Bristol accent. What’s more, her character started with a real fear of birds and chickens, yet when Geves (played by the comical Tom Bridges) enters holding one, she did not show any fear whatsoever.

In the end, we discovered that Scarlett Scarlett (Tessa Gaukroger) murdered Violet Violet as she wanted to be the only person that had a repetitive name. Not the most sensible of motives, but then again I suppose this added to the weird and wonderfulness of this show.

All in all, it was a good show that certainly made me laugh, but feel that some tweaks could help improve the show.

 

Reviewed by Jessica Brewer

Photography by Jamie Corbin

 

Leicester Sqaure Theatre

Murder, She Didn’t Write

Leicester Square Theatre

 

 

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Haunted

The House on Haunted Hill

Leicester Square Theatre

Reviewed – 2nd November 2017

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

 

“a brilliantly bizarre production with constant laughs throughout”

 

How do I even begin to go about briefly describing House on Haunted Hill? This production was based on the 1959 film starring Vincent Price where an eccentric millionaire offers four strangers $10,000 if they last the night at his Haunted House Party. The Lampoons have taken this and put their own delightful twists in by incorporating their own material. This is a brilliantly bizarre production with constant laughs throughout.

From the very moment of walking into the venue the audience were included in the action. Members of the cast in those protective suits that people at crime scenes wear, hand out programmes and ping pong balls. We’re told that we’ll “need those later” and we’ll “know what to do.” It creates an odd humorous yet mysterious atmosphere that remains for the entire performance.

Part of the production’s greatness lies in the strength of the cast. Josh Harvey and Adam Elliott are particularly strong as Lance Schroeder and Dr David Trent respectively. Elliot’s Southern drawl is enough on its own to raise a laugh. The whole cast are magnificent as Vincent Price. It’s lovely to witness a group of people having so much fun onstage together. There was a moment where they all broke character and it felt like we were part of the joke with them.

Haunted

The set was low budget but they played on that and it actually managed to add even more to the comedy of the piece. Some of the stranger moments of this production are extraordinary examples of surreal humour in action. One of the highlights is the Balaklava Ballet Band which is probably one of the oddest couple of minutes you will ever spend in a theatre. The use of songs (from an original score by Mote Keatinge) scattered throughout the piece added a whole new layer of comedic value.

A couple of jokes fell a little flat, especially those concerning Lance Schroeder’s attempts at wooing. Despite this, House on Haunted Hill is an hilarious homage to classic horror films and Vincent Price. The audience started laughing as soon as they walked in and didn’t stop until they left.

 

Reviewed by Katie Douglas

Photography by Headshot Toby

 

 

THE HOUSE ON HAUNTED HILL

is at Leicester Square Theatre until 11th November

 

 

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