The Three Musketeers, Greenwich Theatre Review
Louise Cielecki as D’Artagnan
Written by Penny for Theatre & Tonic.
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review.
This summer, Greenwich Theatre’s favourite Panto villain (and award-winning writer) Anthony Spargo has turned his attention to 17th Century France to write a swashbuckling adventure that promises to be full of laughs, music and sword-swinging action that the whole family can enjoy.
Spargo’s take on this classic tale sees our heroine d’Artagnan leave her rural home to travel to the city of Carcasonne in the hopes of joining the celebrated Musketeers. With impeccable timing, she arrives just as the evil Cardinal Richeleu is plotting to seize power from the late King’s son and heir, Prince Louis, whose interests lean more towards culture than combat.
Although written to be enjoyed by a young family audience, this is not a panto, although there are some elements of Spargo’s script that would be right at home in his annual festive offering. These are the stand-out parts of the show, giving us flashes of brilliance that raise the energy levels and delight the young people in the audience. But as this story is a little more complex than a lot of those adapted for children, scenes establishing the characters and the backstory that has brought us to Richeleu’s reign of terror fall a little flat as there is a lot of information to convey before we get to the swashbuckling fun stuff.
The show had some fun comedy highlights, notably a sequence setting up three duels for newcomer D’Artagnan and a routine involving the twisting up of tongue twisters. They were cleverly written and delivered. And the monosyllabic guard ‘Roquefort’ had the young audience echoing their robotic “Oui” response with glee. The show definitely didn’t need a slapstick Dame and actors in a cow costume, but I would have enjoyed a bit of audience work and a few more panto elements.
The cast of six are actor/musicians – jumping from sword to keyboard or from musket to trumpet with ease. They also created fun rhythms in the transition from dialogue to song, sweeping the stage to set the beat, also delivering some impressive vocal harmonies. But a few issues with the sound balance meant that some of the music didn’t have the impact it should. An escape sequence accompanied by the Mission Impossible theme didn’t really work as you could hardly hear the melody.
Musically, the show had a strong opening with Prince Louis (Finn Whelan) taking on the Hairspray hit “Good Morning Carcasonne”, delivered with a right royal pronunciation instead of the usual nasal teen tones you’d associate with the number. Richeleu’s big number saw our villain (Michaela Murphy, also Musical Director and Co-Arranger) rocking out in style to “Bad to the Bone”. But other song choices felt a bit shoe-horned in to suit the vocals of the performers rather than fitting the plot. Playing D’Artagnan, Louise Cielecki had the strongest vocals on the stage, a beautiful tone and powerful belt, but having her singing a ballad to a lost love when separated from her Musketeer buddies felt like an odd choice, particularly when there was no romantic sub-plot.
At times, the acting was a little understated and the characters slightly one dimensional, with the energy levels only rising with the entrance of Louise Cielecki. She has fantastic stage presence and her D’Artagnan was a larger than life force of nature. Bounding around the stage, her lust for life and adventure was infectious. Credit must also go to Verity Bajoria, who played a trio of contrasting characters so convincingly that I didn’t realise they were played by the same actor until the final bows!
The company of The Three Musketeers is also performing in another family show at Greenwich Theatre this summer, The Elves and the Shoemaker, aimed at younger children. It’s an ambitious step but one to be applauded as Artistic Director James Haddrell, also responsible for directing this production, is clearly committed to introducing young audiences to the joys of live theatre. Although not quite reaching the creative heights of the Greenwich Panto, The Three Musketeers has plenty to keep young people thoroughly entertained as they cheer the exploits of D’Artagnan and her friends this summer.
The Three Musketeers runs until Sunday 24th August. Find out more and book your tickets here.
★ ★ ★