Spamalot | Devonshire Park Theatre, Eastbourne | Wednesday 7 February 2018
Spamalot | Tour | Review
A Triumph of Silliness
If you’re looking for a fun trip out to the theatre then look no further. Lovingly ripped off from the infamous motion picture Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Spamalot is the stage musical that retains all of the silliness and British slapstick humour of the film, and then adds a heap of lively musical numbers to keep your toes tapping and your faces smiling.
Spamalot is centered around the mighty King Arthur and his lovingly simple servant Patsy, who travel to recruit a small army of knights to join them at the round table. Of course every mighty King needs a noble steed to ride on, however, we are given two empty coconut shells to provide the galloping sounds and an imaginary horse on which King Arthur rides on. This sets the tone for the whole show and had the audience laughing throughout the evening. The film remarkably only had a budget of 200k, which is why the coconuts were originally used instead of real horses, and just happened to create some brilliant comedy that made it easier to adapt to the stage.
The cast of eleven all seemed to be enjoying themselves as well as the audience which was really refreshing to see. The lead role of King Arthur was played by Bob Harms, he delivered the outstanding performance and almost looked too natural in a medieval suit of armour!
Once the knights have all been summoned they are sent on a quest by God (symbolised by a giant foot coming out of the sky and a booming voice) to find the holy grail. On their adventure, they encounter all manner of wonderful and wacky characters, such as The Lady of the Lake, A Killer Rabbit, Tim, The Knights Who Say Ni, The French… the list goes on. Big sets are used and change throughout to create the vibrant world in which they travel within. One of my favourite elements of the show was that it quite often breaks the fourth wall, and also intentionally picks flaws in itself to great comical effect. For example, when creating the menacing devil-like character Tim, they show him clearly standing on a small wooden box and point it out to make what could be a sinister scene turn into pure silliness, which is the whole point of the production.
The underlying message of the production is epitomised in the big hit “Always Look On The Bright Side of Life”, which is exactly what this show does, it reminds us not too always take things to seriously and have fun along the way!
I would highly recommend this show to any Monty Python fans or for anyone looking to enjoy some light-hearted entertainment and brilliant comedy.
☆☆☆☆
Reviewer | Stephen Sheldrake
Spamalot is playing at the Devonshire Park Theatre, Eastbourne until Saturday 10th February.