Marie Curie Musical, Charing Cross Theatre Review

Written by Mia for Theatre & Tonic

Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review.

There are content warnings with this show, see here.

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Marie Curie may be a household name, but what do we really know about her? 

This is something that Seeun Choun considered after her daughter asked her about Madame Curie. As she researched Marie Skłodowska-Curie, she realised there was a lot more to her than she’d realised. And thus Marie Curie The Musical was born.

Translated from Korean (by Emma Fraser and Tom Ramsay), the story has now been brought to the Charing Cross Theatre. While choosing to tell Marie’s story as a musical is an interesting choice, it may perhaps appeal to a wider audience. The music itself, by Jongyoon Choi is a bit twee and doesn’t quite hit the mark, with songs collectively feeling inconsistent; however, a few of them do succeed in providing additional poignancy like “Another Name / Hope You're Well” and humour “Radium Paradise” to the show. Some of the lyrics feel a bit literal in their translation, but mostly work well at telling the story.

It’s a small cast, but the talent is huge. Ailsa Davidson is excellent as Marie, bringing her determination, stubbornness and drive to succeed to life in her performance. Chrissie Bhima as Anne Kowalska is definitely one to watch; her voice is tremendous and it’s clear she feels every emotion along with her character. The ensemble is made up of a talented group of actors and Maya Kristal Tenenbaum portrays Emilia with real depth and feeling. 

The factory workers’ scenes are particularly poignant, especially the foreshadowing when they’re teaching Anne how to work with radium; the audience’s shock is clear from the reactions. There are a few graphic scenes, which left me feeling quite sick, but it shows the power of the cast’s acting.

Despite the brilliant performances from the actors, the subject matter is not quite enough to resonate and overall the show feels a little flat. The production opens with Marie’s daughter Irene reading her mother’s journal, but her presence isn’t consistent, so feels unnecessary. There is also a lack of development in the story between Marie and her husband Pierre, which seems a missed opportunity.

The set (Rose Montgomery) is fantastic in its detail, with scientific notes and Periodic Table elements darting across chalkboards and costumes throughout. While the technology is impressive, it does distract from the actors at times; considering the period in which the story is set, something more simple might have allowed the script to shine.

Choun may have condensed this inspirational woman’s life into under two hours, but it leaves you with a lot of thoughts and a need to find out more.

At Charing Cross Theatre until 28 July.

☆ ☆ ☆