REVIEW | Spamalot UK Tour

Spamalot UK Tour
Belgrade Theatre, Coventry

★★★★★

Monty Python's work is iconic so it's not surprising that Spamalot is a favourite to its many fans. Spamalot has been around for a while, making its debut on Broadway in 2005 before heading to London's West End a year later. It's embarking on its third UK Tour in 2018 and I got the opportunity to catch it at Coventry's Belgrade Theatre. 

Despite having knowledge of the Monty Python films, I still went into the theatre unaware of what I was going to witness. The new musical 'lovingly' uses sections from the 1975 motion picture Monty Python and the Holy Grail to create an unforgettable two hours at the theatre. 

Spamalot is absolutely bonkers and throughout the course of the musical we are introduced to wacky characters who could have easily been plucked directly from the silver screen. At the centre is the story is King Arthur who in the beginning sets out to find his Knights of the Round Table who together must venture forth on a quest directly from God himself told through absurd British humour. The narrative of Spamalot isn't particularly stable but as mentioned previously it's loosely based on King Arthur's quest to find the Holy Grail, as well as all of the encounters they find along the way. The production strays away from feeling dated by the addition of modern references, including Donald Trump and Taylor Swift. The addition of these was glorious and really captured the audiences humour.  

What Spamalot does brilliantly is mocking musicals through song and dance. The Song That Goes Like This is a nod to the over the top love songs that always manage to be cemented into a musical. King Arthur and Lady of The Lake managed to capture the wit of the lyrics whilst also maintaining flawless vocals too. A particular musical number I enjoyed was a song all about how to make a musical a success and the importance of having a famous face, You Won't Succeed in Showbiz was highly relevant and hilarious. 

Spamalot really does recognise the traditional humour embedded in the Monty Python films. It played with original ideas from the movies as well as bringing on a fresh take on them as well. 

The cast of Spamalot is superb. They really execute the pace and slick comedy timing through their dialogue. Bob Harms' portrayal of King Arthur was without a doubt the performance of the evening. He had impeccable humour and timing as he leads his Knights on their adventure with a concerning lack of leadership skills. 

Taking on the role of The Lady of The Lake is Sarah Harlington whose vocals were absolutely the highlight of her performance. Not only does she have an incredible voice but she also really embeds expression and flare, particularly noticeable in her number Whatever Happened To My Part. Sarah provided a role that both brought natural talent and comedy. Of course it was hard to resist singing along to Always Look On The Bright Side of Life but the finale provided us with the opportunity to sing along, yipee!

One of my highlights in the musical was watching a bunch of Knights and the 'damsel in distress' burst into a glamorous song and dance, with feathers and sparkle too! While Jordan was impressed with the portrayal of the relationship between Arthur and his Patsy, something which has much evolved in its adaptation from the movie. 

Spamalot truly surprised me in being an incredible performance of utter chaos and madness that had me belly laughing throughout. If it's a fun night at the theatre you are after then Spamalot won't disappoint. It was another stellar production from SellADoor. 

Spamalot is performing at the Belgrade Theatre until Sat 03 March. You can book your tickets over on the theatre's website. 

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If you enjoyed my review of Spamalot then you may enjoy reading my review of NeverLand, The Vaults in London or my Interview with Laura Baldwin from Eugenius! The Musical.