Reviews

First time director Callon Leam did not choose an easy path for his first production, with the tricky to stage Blackadder Goes Forth. Originally written for TV, it provides some challenges for theatre. To compound this, Covid regulations lead to some cast challenges. Well received by its opening night audience, this is an entertaining and smooth production and a credit to its emerging director.

It is 1653 and the Taj Mahal is about to be revealed to the people. Years of speculation have almost immortalised the building, despite the fact that it has been hidden behind by a high wall. Humayun and Babur are two low level guards, stationed outside the wall to ensure secrecy until all is revealed at sunrise. They must not face the wall. They are not supposed to move or to speak. Their swords must be raised at all times. Disobedience will result in terrible punishment, including death by elephant.

Such are the ordeals faced by … the Guards at the Taj.

‘Some thoughts sustain you; others can kill you,’ says Bert Wilkins, in another life-and-death situation. He faced a Turkish firing squad, survived severe frostbite and a polar bear attack, and then was fearless at the Western Front where he earned the nickname ‘The Mad Photographer’ – from the Germans – all before he was thirty years old.

This show is billed as a musical adaptation and lives up to much of the promise of infusing the play with raw performances of popular contemporary tunes. The songs are well selected and performed with gusto and enthusiasm. The instruments employed are simple but effective although much of the music relies heavily on the vocals and choral work. The playfulness of the music as a way of telling the story is one the strengths of the show.