A dead man, a newt obsession, and a birthday.
If you’re looking for a camp, overambitious comedic production, then Operation Mincemeat is just for you.
As long as you’re fine with being cramped into tiny seats and potentially having knees in the back of your head for the entire production.
The Fortune Theatre has long been a theatre that has a love-hate reaction with punters, some adore it, some despise it. Sitting in the second row of the upper circle, the view would be expected to be clear, albeit slightly high up, however the safety rail completely blocks the entire centre line of the stage, and your neck can only handle so much craning – especially when your legs are in your chest and leaning back a fraction would have your head in the lap of the person behind you.
Aside from possibly the most uncomfortable seating ever experienced (even worse than those seats in The Arts) the show itself wasn’t bad at all.
Operation Mincemeat is a dramatic retelling of the real story of ‘the man who never was’ and just how ‘operation mincemeat’ came to be. With a lot of creative license.
This production is definitely one of those marmite shows, people are either going to really love it, or they are going to hate it.
With only 5 people in the cast, there is nowhere to hide, and thankfully, they don’t need to.
In such a small cast, it’s imperative for the cast to work incredibly well together, and that they do. Each actor had their moment to shine, from Jak Malone’s heartbreakingly beautiful ‘Dear Bill’ to Natasha Hodgson’s ‘Born To Lead’.
There are no standouts in this cast, they are all stars, with incredible talent and skill with comedic timing, facial expressions and overall passion and flair for the dramatic.
If the rating was just on cast talent, it would be a full five stars.
Alas, the failings of this production (alongside the theatre itself) is the book and the score.
Whilst it must be acknowledged that the source material already feels like some made up tale, the overdramatic set changes and frantic flitting from characters makes it hard to follow. Some characters are made obvious, like Bernard Spilsbury in a bedazzled blood-stained-apron, but others are only made clear by an addition of glasses or a hat, making it much harder to follow.
There is a lot of assumed knowledge in this production, public going in with no prior knowledge of Operation Mincemeat, the MI5 or even Hitler, may struggle to figure out what is going on at any given moment.
At risk of sounding oversensitive, the choice to turn Nazi salutes into dabbing in a glitzy techno dance break to open act two isn’t one that necessarily works and pays off.
The score is simple and quite frankly a little lazy.
Jukebox musicals get away with using other music as they are just that, a jukebox musical, but every single track in Operation Mincemeat rips off another musical. With tracks blatant nods to shows like Hamilton and Six, all that is changed is the lyrics. A few similar songs would be fun, but some original score would benefit this production massively.
Many spent more time guessing the original song and focusing more on that game than the actual production before them.
The team must be commended though, for having a cast that play a multitude of characters regardless of age and gender.
Seeing Natasha Hodgson play the ballsy man-in-charge, Ewen Montagu, was a welcome breath of fresh air.
A highlight of the production was the plethora of tongue-in-cheek jabs to Britain and those in charge, including this exchange:
“I have no idea what’s going on” “Welcome to the British Government.”
No amount of amphibian outbursts and jarring birthday celebrations can detract from a confusing book that lacks peaks and troughs…it’s constantly peaking.
Whilst it isn’t a highlight for me, it is proving to be a favourite of many and has even announced an extension until 19th August, with their official London cast album being released on 12th May, so they must be hitting a sweet spot somewhere.
I would like to give the show another chance where I can actually see the stage fully, I might enjoy it more and see more of the props/costumes, but until then a respectable three stars it is.
https://www.thefortunetheatre.com/operation-mincemeat-a-new-musical
Reviewer: Ely King
Reviewed: 9th May 2023
North West End UK Rating: