★ ★ ★ .5

Reviewer - Annie

*Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in return for an honest review

One of the true sign to me that summer is approaching is the return of the Chichester Festival Theatre’s wonderful summer programme. After last year’s success with Crazy For You which is about to open its West End transfer, there is no doubt that Chichester Festival had big boots to fill this year.

Returning with not one but three talent-filled shows, the season has opened with a run on Stephen Sondheim’s perhaps lesser-known work Assassins.

Assassins follow the figures of those who were both successful and attempted assassinating the presidents of the US across history. Although many of us will know names such as John Wilkes Booth or Lee Harvey Oswald, it opens the conversation to the names and incentives of those who were not quite as successful or did not reach as infamous heights as their predecessors.

Chichester Festival’s revival of Sondheim’s work is larger than life and has managed to modernise the work whilst still remaining reflective of history. This is cleverly done through Polly Findlay’s direction of setting the shoe as if at a national convention, and the assassins are picked from the crowd. Again the watchful spectators of each assassination are much like the stereotypical American citizens you might expect to find at one of today’s presidential rallies.

For a show with such a dark subject matter, these elements bring a wave of comedy to the show - perhaps more on the satirical side at times but it does offer light relief at necessary moments.

Again this larger-than-life element is further injected into the show from an all-glitzy pre-show show; reminiscent of what you might find before an NFL match. Lizzie Clachan’s design is excellently executed in all respects here and throughout the show. Feeling well studied and easy to place.

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However, with the opening pre-show and the heavy use of over the top renditions of songs, the show did start to feel almost too much at times. The pre-show was fun to watch but was such a juxtaposition to the show it almost set a confusing tone for the rest of the show and how to react - is this a show with an important message or a fun night out?

There is no doubt that any Sondheim show is going to be clad with ingenious numbers and beautifully artistic musical moments. A personal favourite from Assassins which the programme also highlights is “when you’ve a gun- everybody pays attention” which is split in half by an extended pause where Guiteau points a gun at the audience. This is an excellent example of Sondheim’s love for silence. This love of Sondheim’s is wonderfully complimented by the show’s sound design which is every bit as dramatic and not overused but instead has the audience on the edge of their seat for the next gunshot.

Although the music is excellent throughout, John Weidman’s book is far less concise or easy to follow. It is unclear in the show what the message is going to be or in fact what the motive is throughout, and it does create issues with the pacing and flow of the show. The show has been cut to fill a 1:50hr singular act and it still perhaps makes it difficult to understand the incentive behind the show or indeed the message it is trying to portray.

With this it perhaps then explains the choice for an over the top production of the show, to add an additional layer which the book has sadly not provided.

This was my first time at the Chichester Festival Theatre and it is more than fair to say that the space is by no means a small room to fill. It’s an incredible space and the stage is wonderfully designed whilst ensuring there is no bad seat in the house. The show’s design and choreography are both excellently used to benefit the theatre and audience. However, I can’t help but wonder whether the sheer size of the theatre is again another reason to have led to such a grand production - with the pressure to fill the space. Regardless I sadly felt it did overall take away from the production.

That being said there are some absolutely standout performances throughout. Danny Mac offers stellar vocals as Booth and Nick Holder’s slow-burning portrayal of Bick is just sublime to watch. However, the comedic pairing of Carly Mercedes Dyer and Amy Booth-Steel is worth buying a ticket for alone. The two complement each other perfectly and support one another with such confidence.

Chichester’s revival of Assassins is filled with wonderful songs and outstanding performances, really setting the season off with a bang (pardon the pun). It has been impeccably directed and produced, and the slightly disappointing book does not detract from what a unique show this is. If you fancy a night of overly garish American patriotism and glorious Sondheim music - make sure to catch this show before its run ends!