Houdini’s Greatest Escape
Photo by Pamela Raith
Review by Martine Silkstone
If you are considering an evening out - date night, celebration, or just for the enjoyment - then you should definitely take a look at the theatre. It can sometimes be dismissed as too expensive, but when you consider that tickets for Houdini's Greatest Escape start at just £13, I think you'll find that it’s actually cheaper than a trip to the cinema. How about that? Live entertainment, on stage, plus a drink in the bar, for less than a movie and bag of sweets - what a great idea!
But will you like it? Well…
Yes! This is a play that will appeal to all ages and all tastes. It's fast-paced, funny, and chaotic, with clever wordplay, slapstick and a few magic tricks thrown in for good measure. In short, thoroughly entertaining - like a play, crossed with a panto, crossed with vaudeville, crossed with a farce. Pure stage-based fun.
Adam Elliott as Hardini. Photo by Pamela Raith
Just four actors perform the whole show, with Ben Higgins as the cocky escapologist, Houdini, and Lydia Piechowiak as his clever wife, Bess. Eager to perform at the King's gala, the duo are soon thwarted by the shady spiritualist, Agatha, who also wants the royal honour. Using her underworld connections, she frames our heroes for murder, sending them on the run (cue escape from handcuffs) and on a mission to clear their name.
Along the way they encounter gangster bullies, tipsy police, a rugged woodsman with the voice of Sean Bean, and a woman with an elephant for an arm (for some reason).
Covering a variety of roles - including the elephant! - Kirsty Cox takes it all in her stride and manages to portray a wealth of personalities, from the intimidating gang leader, Ma Barker, to the smarmy charm of bogus medium, Agatha.
Meanwhile, Adam Elliott is astonishing as a wide array of characters, switching costume, accent, and occasionally gender, with apparent ease and in the blink of an eye. Opening the show as Houdini's brother, Hardeen, he charms the audience with a little magic and cheeky banter, setting the scene for what is to come. He’s certainly the stand out performer for me, though it’s fair to say that all were wonderful on the night.
Photo by Pamela Raith
I did feel that, despite Elliott's charisma and encouragement, the atmosphere for opening night was just a little flat in the first half - perhaps due to a combination of initial exposition and a somewhat reticent audience. In fairness, it was a Tuesday evening in Ipswich and it can, understandably, take a beat to get on the right wavelength for this kind of show. However, make no mistake, by the second act everyone was on board and it was an absolute blast! Clever staging - especially the underwater scene - clever dialogue, clever tricks, and a clever cast. Such fun!
In summary, this is the kind of production that will appeal to everyone and it offers a wonderfully entertaining night out, providing laughter, drama and magic (in every sense of the word) - what more could you want? Perhaps it’s time to ‘escape’ the daily grind and ‘conjure’ some fun and frolics in the form of a ticket…
Note: Please bear in mind that almost every show at New Wolsey Theatre has tickets from £13, giving you a huge choice of entertainment, at an affordable price, throughout the year.
Houdini’s Greatest Escape is at New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich until 8 May.
FOR FULL SHOW DETAILS AND BOOKING LINK, CLICK HERE