It's time for my review of King Kong.Based on the 1932 novel, the stage production of King Kong is a contemporary take on the classic tale of Beauty and the Beast. The story follows a young actress and a maverick filmmaker as they voyage from the bustling streets of 1930s New York to an uncharted island to capture the greatest wonder the world has ever seen. King Kong is a larger-than-life encounter with a legend that’s always been too big to contain.
The main attraction of this musical is, arguably, the 2,400-pound and 20-foot-tall puppet star used to portray the titular character of King Kong. The puppet's limbs are operated by 10 different actors, whilst three "voodoo operators" control more robotics involved with the character off-stage. The puppet is a true spectacle and immediately steals the show upon its entrance. It is unlike anything that has ever been done on Broadway before, and the creative team behind this project should be commended for ambition and determination to create this. A particular highlight of the puppet's design are the different facial expressions that King Kong uses, which was exceedingly helpful in ensuring that the character was as life-like as possible. Whilst suspension of disbelief may be required in order to forget the somewhat visible puppeteers, it is still awe-inspiring. Earlier this year, the production received a Special Tony Award for the design of the King Kong puppet, which I would agree was well deserved.
Whilst impressive creatively, the show is not as successful in regards to its book, which has been written by Harry Potter and the Cursed Child author Jack Thorne. Whilst Thorne is an immensely talented playwright, his book for King Kong was not flawless. The story starts out very strong and sets the scene for an interesting narrative, but it then begins to falter as the first act progresses. The dialogue begins to become somewhat drawn-out, causing the show's pacing to drastically slow down. Having said this, the pace does pick up again with act two, whereby the book seems to become more compelling.
Christiani Pitts, in the leading role of Ann Darrow, was excellent. Pitts has a remarkable singing voice, and gave an all-round outstanding performance that I would not be able to fault. As well as Pitts, Erik Lochtefeld also deserves a special mention for his portrayal of the character Lumpy. Lochtefeld gave an exceedingly heartfelt performance, and conveyed the most well-developed characterisation within the show. The entirety of the ensemble were also all exceptional, and it was evident throughout that there were a number of extraordinary talented singers and dancers among them.
The scenic design, by Peter England, mainly consisted of a backdrop containing a number of different screen projections that changed depending on the location of the scene taking place. All of the screen projections featured a vast amount of detail and were of the highest possible quality. The lighting, by Peter Mumford, was masterfully designed. This particular design aspect is particularly effective when used to place King Kong into the spotlight, whereby the lighting is used to conceal the puppeteers controlling the puppet star. The choreography, by Drew McOnie, was yet another highlight. The choreography was most impressive during the show's opening musical number, whereby a large crowd of New Yorkers hastily dance through the city's busy streets. The choreography remained action-packed and exciting throughout the show, which in turn reminded me of McOnie's previous choreography for London shows such as In the Heights and Jesus Christ Superstar.
Now for my final verdict on King Kong. I give King Kong...
Whilst the book is not quite as good as it could have been, King Kong redeems itself in a number of different ways. The puppet star is jaw-dropping, whilst the majority of the cast and creative aspects were also excellent.
Think it should have got a higher rating? Agree with my rating? Think it should have got a lower rating? If so comment below.
Thanks for reading!
-The Reviewer
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