Paddington the Musical review: funny, witty and wonderfully old-fashioned
This is musical theatre at its funniest, cleverest and most delightful.
This is musical theatre at its funniest, cleverest and most delightful.
When the titular character arrives on stage in Paddington the Musical (to an ovation worthy of a rock star), he has the familiar “Please look after this bear” tag around his neck. And the show looks after him with affection to spare, in a production that’s as comforting as a marmalade sandwich, and as bright as his red felt hat and blue duffel coat ensemble.
There are contemporary messages about welcoming folk no matter where they’re from (in Paddington’s case, it’s Peru), the importance of family whether traditional or found, and how everyone deserves to have a roof over their head. But said messages are delivered lightly in a show that’s very funny, extremely witty and wonderfully old-fashioned.
Not since Mary Poppins has a musical wallowed in such vast sets, such dazzling colours and such hummable songs – which come courtesy of Tom Fletcher from the band McFly and run the gamut from show tunes to music hall via vaudeville and calypso. They’re sung and danced with such gusto that you could use the energy beaming out from the stage at the Savoy Theatre to run the capital’s Christmas lights.
The story will be familiar to fans of the 2004 film, as the stowaway bear arrives in London and is taken in by the Brown family. Comedy and chaos ensue (with a few jokes for adults that will sail over kids’ heads) as Paddington wins everyone’s hearts except for the stone-cold one that belongs to National History Museum taxidermist Millicent Clyde.
On screen, the dastardly Clyde, who literally wants to stuff the bear, was played by Nicole Kidman. Here she’s played by Victoria Hamilton-Barritt, who, after Hex and Cinderella, has become the West End’s go-to baddie and rightly so. She’s a thoroughly malevolent Millicent, like Cruella de Vil in tweed as she stalks the stage with dastardly abandon.
Everyone else in the cast works just as hard, and none more so than the ever-reliable Bonnie Langford as the loveable Scottish housekeeper Mrs Bird. The accent is amusingly hammy and the moment when she does the splits is astounding.
At the heart of this heartwarming story is, of course, Paddington himself, and he’s brought vividly to life. Inside the suit is the remarkable Arti Shah, who conveys emotion with body language as the equally remarkable James Hameed provides the voice and puppetry.
To see the bear dancing around the stage, a maraca in each hand, is a deliriously wacky sight. And to see Paddington the Musical is to experience musical theatre at its funniest, cleverest and most delightful. Staff at the Savoy Theatre should prepare themselves for the long haul, because this show is going to run and run.
Paddington the Musical is at the Savoy Theatre, London.
[Hero image credit: Johan Persson]
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