CRUEL INTENTIONS at The Other Palace

★★★★

“an evening of unadulterated fun and escapism, with a fabulous soundtrack delivered with passion, right up to its climax”

With a core cast of eight triple-threats, bolstered by an equally talented ensemble, “Cruel Intentions: The ‘90s Musical” bursts onto the stage at The Other Palace in a glorious blaze of fun and virtuosity. However cruel the protagonists may be, the true intentions of this talented troupe are to entertain and send us home with our heads full of ‘poptastic’ tunes and a smile as wide as the Cheshire Cat’s. Ay, there’s the rub – the toxic treachery is let off too lightly. Based on the 1999 teen romantic drama, in turn based on the eighteenth-century French morality tale ‘Les Liaisons Dangereuses’, the wages of sin are just a token penalty. Yet to their credit, Jordan Ross, Lindsey Rosin and Roger Kumble – the creators of this memorable musical – inject some of the behaviour of the characters with a modern-day sensibility to redress the balance.

But such conjecture misses the point and is ill-suited to a show that thrives on not taking itself seriously. Jonathan O’Boyle’s racy and pacey production dishes out the story and the jokes in delightful, digestible bitesize scenes with brilliantly choice hit songs for punchlines. Which is where the ingenuity really shines, for it never feels like a juke-box musical. Even in the most abrupt jolt from dialogue to song, the transition is smooth, natural, uncannily appropriate, and often very, very funny.

It is a winning formula, proven by its Off-Broadway debut seven years ago which was extended three times back in 2017. Even if the London revival is somewhat emotionally disengaging, we are drawn into the protagonists’ world as we follow the sociopathic stepsiblings’ shenanigans. The charming but devilish couple place a bet. Kathryn (Rhianne-Louise McCaulsky) wagers on whether Sebastian (Daniel Bravo) can deflower their high school headmaster’s daughter, Annette (Abbie Budden). As the couple set out to destroy the innocent girl, they find themselves in a dangerous game of revenge and malice. Kathryn is equally intent on corrupting new girl Cecile (Rose Galbraith) using Sebastian as a pawn – among others including music teacher Ronald (Nickcolia King-N’Da), gay couple Blaine (Josh Barnett) and Greg (Barney Wilkinson), and Cecile’s nouveau-riche mother, Bunny Caldwell (Jess Buckby).

“Gary Lloyd’s power-driven and energised choreography is devilishly divine”

Each cast member has ample opportunity to showcase their outstanding vocal abilities as they soar through the musical numbers, giving a whole new slant on the original lyrics. It will be difficult to disassociate, now, Ace of Base’s ‘The Sign’ from Cecile’s first orgasm, or TLC’s ‘No Scrubs’ from Bunny’s innate racism. Elsewhere a real poignancy pours from Jewel’s ‘Foolish Games’, courtesy of Abbie Budden’s heartfelt portrayal of the prim Annette. Reaping the biggest applause is Rhianne-Louise McCaulsky’s Kathryn whose outstanding solos almost make you forgive her character’s maleficence. The Counting Crows ‘Colourblind’ is a gorgeous duet for Daniel Bravo and Budden, before the ensemble kicks in with spine-tingling harmonies.

There is little time to do so, but between songs the performers manage to flesh out personality onto the skeletal bones of their personas. Rose Galbraith is at once raunchy and kittenish as the ingénue Cecile, while Budden’s virginal Annette bewitches with sex appeal and sassiness despite the prim exterior. Daniel Bravo’s amoral coolness melts along the path of redemption, whereas McCaulsky remains as cold as ice: the self-confessed mistress of self-absorption. Her performance is indeed a highlight, although generously allowing the stars surrounding her to shine as bright.

There are inevitably moments of implausibility. And for all its salaciousness and profanity, the show is somehow not very shocking. There is a clean gloss that renders the scandalous a touch scandal-free. It is all about sex, but is sometimes sexless as though the intimacy directors are on overtime. But let’s not single them out – it seems the rest of the creative team are on overtime too. Gary Lloyd’s power-driven and energised choreography is devilishly divine. Chris Whybrow’s sound is crisp and perfectly balanced to pinpoint each vocal and each note from the four-piece band, led by musical director Denise Crowley.

Slick, snappy and sometimes sensational, “Cruel Intentions” pokes fun at its source material and itself. Who cares about its intentions – cruel or otherwise? The result is an evening of unadulterated fun and escapism, with a fabulous soundtrack delivered with passion, right up to its climax.

CRUEL INTENTIONS at The Other Palace

Reviewed on 30th January 2024

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Pamela Raith

Previously reviewed at this venue:

A VERY VERY BAD CINDERELLA | ★★★★ | December 2023

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

CRUEL INTENTIONS

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★★★★

“This is a very funny show indeed, complemented beautifully by Tim Gilvin’s pastiche score”

Everybody loves a villain. Which is why, in recent years, our favourite Disney miscreants have stepped forward to take centre stage in their stories, such as ‘Cruella’ from The One Hundred and One Dalmatians, or ‘Maleficent’ from Sleeping Beauty. They usually remain the villain, relishing the boos and hisses that feed them. But what if they want to convince you that, at heart, they weren’t the ‘bad guy’ after all. A large chunk of “Unfortunate: the Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch” allows Ursula to present her mitigating circumstances. She ain’t ‘bad’ really. But she is ‘badass’.

Shawna Hamic well and truly gets the jury on her side as the loveable ‘octogirl’, tearing up our preconceptions of the hag and throwing them overboard. She captains the ship, steering the show through the scandals, sex and subversive salaciousness of the story. It is a choppy sea, whipped up by hailstorms of catchy tunes, slapstick, jokes, innuendo and overblown, camp-as-Christmas performances. The production has come a long way from its Edinburgh Fringe origins, mooring up in Southwark before embarking on a nationwide tour in the New Year. Its growth in popularity seems unstoppable. Unfortunately, so does its growth in length, and somebody needs to step in to stem the swelling.

Having been treated to a potted backstory depicting Ursula and Triton growing up together, from squabbling schoolkids to teenage sweethearts, we dive into the crux of the tale. Following the unfortunate dissection of a sea cucumber named Kirsty, Ursula is framed and banished to the dark waters of the ocean. Flash forward twenty years and Triton, a single dad, is having a hard time with his youngest daughter, Ariel. Thomas Lowe, all glitter and beard, is a delightfully dumb king of the sea who fails to rein in his daughter’s sexual curiosities. Or rather, in Ariel’s own words, her desire to be ‘where the dicks are’ (one of the many earworm numbers). River Medway is the lewd and lascivious Ariel who falls for Jamie Mawson’s dumber than dumb Prince Eric. To get the man though, the woman must ‘lose her voice’ – so croons Ursula in one of the many satirical messages that pepper the production.

Among the high camp, excessive and heightened delivery, a standout performance is Allie Dart, as Sebastian the crab. Swapping the Jamaican accent for Irish, Dart pinpoints – and joins in – the joyful ridiculousness of it all. Doubling up as Colette the French chef, she delivers another of the musical highlights, ‘Les Poissons’, which showcases the intelligence of the text and lyrics that is often drowned in the waves of razzamatazz. But as a spectacle, “Unfortunate…” is an absolute triumph. Abby Clarke is the unseen star of the show, whose set, costume and puppetry are worth the ticket price alone.

There is nothing Disney about this show whatsoever, a fact that is wondrously celebrated in the number ‘We Didn’t Make it Disney’. The writers, Robyn Grant and Daniel Foxx, have no eye on the family audience at all. But they do have an eye for comedy. This is a very funny show indeed, complemented beautifully by Tim Gilvin’s pastiche score. Chaotic and camp, full of sex and sorcery, mayhem and madness, it is an oceanic treat. You can’t just dip your toe in, you need to dive headlong. The shock as it washes over you is exhilarating and invigorating. Go on, take the plunge. You’ll need stamina to weather the storm (yes – I’ve mentioned it already – it does overstretch itself) but it is worth it.

CRUEL INTENTIONS at The Other Palace

★★★★

“an evening of unadulterated fun and escapism, with a fabulous soundtrack delivered with passion, right up to its climax”

“Gary Lloyd’s power-driven and energised choreography is devilishly divine”

CRUEL INTENTIONS at The Other Palace