The Witches - 2023 - The National Theatre's Olivier Theatre

 The Witches – Seen at The National Theatre’s Olivier Theatre – Saturday 25^th November, 2023.

Roald Dahl has always juxtaposed the magical with the macabre; the sweet with the sinister. Stage adaptations of popular films and established source material are currently at the absolute epicentre of populist, commercial theatre. Whether it’s everyone’s favourite nanny being a blessing in disguise in Mrs. Doubtfire, or Marty zooming Back To The Future – to seminal effect.

   Now, the National Theatre stages a truly spectacular, brand-new musical version of Dahl’s The Witches for its annual yuletide programming - a customarily subversive allegory on mortality, potions, mice, and hotel conventions with ulterior motives.

  Director Lynsey Turner (returning to The National after supernaturality of a more occult tone in The Crucible), stuns with an absolutely superb, simply dazzling production. It expertly combines visual aplomb, with Lucy Kirkwood’s endlessly inventive book – which references everything from selfies to Lynx Africa!

  These contemporary touchstones are nicely balanced with always honouring the fantastical subgenre of witchcraft’s far more traditional origins too - not least aesthetically. Lizzie Clachan’s terrific sets, begin in full Tim Burton-esque gothic mode: insidiously twisting trees – complete with seamlessly incorporated video projection. Dave Malloy’s lyrics even acknowledge these archetypal conventions in the opening number: ‘Everyone knows what a witch looks like!’. The colossal Olivier Theatre, is perfectly suited to encapsulate it all too – it’s mounted on such an ambitious scope and scale; the effect is awe-inspiring.

The colour palette softens in the second half in favour of pastels, as we relocate to The Hotel Magnificent – where we meet gluttonous, upper-class posh boy Bruno Jenkins. His snobbery at the exasperation of staying in rather more provincial surroundings than he’s accustomed, is hilarious: ‘Where’s the single malt?!’. The show is completely stolen here by the exceptional William Skinner – who is gifted an entire top hat-and-tails-style number all to himself, on the joys of a whole panoply of confectionary, with the ensemble dressed as giant cupcakes. ‘Sweets, chocolate and great big toffee / Maltesers and Revels / Every flavour ‘cept the coffee!’ – such witty lyricism, delivered with boundless, full-tilt brio by the revelatory Skinner!

 

Katherine Kingsley is also brilliant as The Grand-High Witch, striking exactly the correct mixture between gleefully evil and very funny. Marvel at the atmospheric, magical trickery, revealing the true appearance of the titular clan. Beneath the leader’s veneer of ruthless, sophisticated glamour, lurks a corrosive mask, akin to a rotten apple - thanks to astoundingly clever illusionary effects. While there are certainly several of these darker moments, it’s never too scary – and will utterly captivate anyone from 8 to 80. Even the hot-button topic of audience etiquette is hilariously satirised. At one point, the fourth wall is suddenly broken, as Kingsley challenges an unsuspecting member of the audience, spotlit for using their mobile phone. Ingeniously, it’s not initially clear whether this self-referential nod is supposed to be a deliberate part of the show – as she declares with acerbic, Transylvanian sneer: ‘You’re at The National Theatre for god’s sake! Everyone’s having a wonderful time!’ – and we are. One of her standout songs, Wouldn’t it Be Nice, alludes to how much better it would be, to eschew all children and their perpetual demands: ‘Wouldn’t it be nice / Just to have a little break'... This induced much identificatory laughter from the parents in the audience!

 

It’s just one of many moments, in a production that constantly surprises, not only with its astonishing technical innovation, but also the sheer audaciousness of Kirkwood’s writing, despite the pace dropping ever so slightly towards the end.  

  Curiously, thus far, its only had an 11-week run in-house, without an announcement of a West End transfer, which is unthinkable - when the quality is this incomparable. It’s fully deserving of being a mainstay, both in the West End and on tour, for many years, and is, for me, the undisputed – best show of 2023!

 

Rating: * * * * *