A true crime story of a still unsolved crime in small town America, KENREX blends genres, true crime, western, music into something far, far greater than the sum of its parts. What begins as an almost true crime podcast style reconstruction of a murder turns into a study of how a small community shapes its own mythology, and how fear, loyalty and silence can outlast the truth. After acclaimed runs in Sheffield and Southwark Playhouse, this transfer to The Other Palace just confirms how brilliant KENREX is.
Ken Rex McElroy was a violent bully who terrorised the small town of Skidmore, Missouri, for years. With no sheriff and no police within an hour’s drive, the law was never able to stop him. A snake-oil lawyer (with a brilliant introduction that almost adds musical as a genre to KENREX) who was always able to get Ken Rex off the charges, especially if there had been a convenient fire or other bout of witness intimidation the night before. This story leads us through witness accounts, local gossip, FBI reports and community mythology revealing how the town’s fear and years of abuse turns into something ese.
Tour de force may be overused but that is just what Jack Holden puts on here playing all the characters throughout. His ability to morph from character to character is staggering, he introduces it early on to comedic effect as we meet some of the townspeople but later as we meet Ken Rex, the laughter stops. In a second Holden can have a sweet old lady who runs the local shop turn into this malevolent force stalking the town of Skidmore. It’s truly astounding work. The precision of these transformations – vocal, physical, emotional – is astonishing to watch, you will have no doubt which character you are watching nor will you miss the changes especially as fear and menace come in. As if this wasn’t a big enough contribution, Holden co-writes alongside Director Ed Stambollouian.
Stambollouian’s direction is just as good, the tight pacing bringing the audience along on the ride and judiciously bringing in moments of comedy to give some slight relief from the growing sense that this will all end in blood and violence. KENREX is another example of a fantastic team coming together most notably with composer John Patrick Elliott who plays music on stage throughout, the Americana soundtrack, brashy and rocky but also pure country – his musical storytelling is an essential part of the show. The partnership between Elliot and Holden is obvious, glances and nods and the occasional joke – it is very much a creative partnership, far from background music.
The lighting by Joshua Pharo brilliantly draws us into the small town and the sometimes small lives, providing great humour in empty spotlights and then the terror of KenRex’s pickup truck. Giles Thomas’ sound design also elevates, allowing for not just vocal reverbs and changes through the many microphones but the use of surround sound is superb, I actually thought for a moment there was a cast member (in a one man show!) shouting from behind me in the audience. The combination of this team in building atmosphere is superb.
Kenrex is a blistering inventive piece of theatre that will leave you thinking about it afterwards. It’s a splendid fusion of genres and unlike anything else on stage at the moment. The creative team deserve every plaudit for bringing this extraordinary piece to the stage. This should be an awards contender and don’t be surprised to see it have further life in the West End, it would be well deserved.
KENREX plays until 1st February 2026, https://theotherpalace.co.uk/kenrex/
Reviewer: Dave Smith
Reviewed: 10th December 2025
North West End UK Rating: