Mischief Theatre made their name with the well renowned comedy The Play That Goes Wrong and The Comedy about Spies written by Jonathan Sayer and Ed Zanders. The company brought a piece of Greece to the stage with Thespians: Greece The Musical (But Not That One).
The first act introduced the five main characters of the storyline, Adonis (Marc Pickering), Thepsis (James Spence), Poly (Claire-Marie Hall), Melampus (Mia Jerome) and Atlas (Luke Latchman). There’s a life threatening drought in Greece, and the only way to have any hope of rain is to pray to the The Tyrant (Rhys Taylor), who has the ability to make it rain and she certainly lives up to her name throughout the musical.
In act one, the characters appeared to lack some of the hijinks comedy that their other productions have from the start. Although by the audience’s responses, this might have just been me, as other audience members were really enjoying it. However, the action ramped back up in Act Two and Mischief Theatre came into their own again. The energy was higher, and there’s far more comedy delivered.
Jasmine Swan has created a really good set. Parts are interchangeable, allowing the cast to move them around quickly to create the next scene. I especially liked the portable bubble bath used multiple times by The Tyrant. She certainly wasn’t suffering during the draught season.
The Comedy of Spies still remains to be my favourite production by Mischief Theatre. I can see this touring production of Thespians Greece The Musical (But Not That One) to be very popular as the company has built up a very good reputation and deservedly so. For me, I would have liked a bit more comedy in the first act.
For more information about Thespians: Greece The Musical (But Not That One) and future productions at Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, please use the link below.
Four Stars.
Theatre, Art and Film Reviews 
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