The Happiest Man On Earth, Southwark Playhouse Borough Review

Written by Chelsea for Theatre and Tonic

Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review

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Based on the critically acclaimed novel of the same name, The Happiest Man on Earth tells the incredible true story of Eddie Jaku. A Holocaust survivor who continued to smile through one the darkest moments in history.

This one-man show takes you through his past by first bringing you to his present. The play starts with Jaku entering the theatre with the lights fully up and a big smile on his face. He greets the audience and has little one on one moments with random viewers. His smile and warm spirit emanate the space and then he confesses that he is nervous. Not to speak to the audience, but that he has to speak on behalf of his grandson soon and he isn’t sure how to tell his story. The lights slowly alter and suddenly we are transported into a play of his life. We are taken through his numerous captures and escapes through the Holocaust. Leaving one camp to reunite with family just to be taken to another camp soon after. All while still having the strive to keep going and tell a joke along the way.

At first the lighting design, by Harold Burgess, is seamless and adds character to the piece, but as the play goes on the changes get quite clunky and sporadic. In comparison, the sound design by Brendan Aanes starts abruptly and doesn’t further the piece until the end where they become less shock sounds and more highlights of the text. Both created an odd backdrop for this one-man show. They almost pushed against the peaceful and kind spirit of Eddie Jaku and forced the actor to become loud and a bit frantic at moments.

That being said, Kenneth Tigar was a wonderful Eddie. He brought the warmth and care that Jaku carried throughout his years and showed the resilience he had through tragedy. There were moments of utter stillness where you could feel everything he was saying with no words at all.

The play itself, adapted from the book by Mark St. Germain, did a wonderful job of encompassing so much of someone's huge life into such a short span of time. However, once the Holocaust was over, the rest of his story flew by. It would have been nice to explore more of the moments post war that shaped him as well. Especially since the main quote, quoted twice in the show, was, “Family first, family second, family last, and everyone is family”, and we really only hear about him and not a lot about the people who surrounded him through the years.

As a whole, The Happiest Man on Earth is an inspiring piece that I think the real Eddie Jaku would be proud of. It is heartfelt and harrowing. It makes you want to be a better person, tell your parents you love them and go out and purchase the novel so you can learn more about him.

At Southwark Playhouse Borough until 14 December 2024.

★★★★