Review by Daz Gale
⭐️⭐️⭐️
The King’s Head Theatre in Islington is celebrating its first birthday in its new space. Though its start was slightly rocky, it has been given a new lease of life with a reconfigured space that works much better than before and a highly exciting season of programming announced for 2025. The year there is kicking off with a world premiere as the stage version of FIREBIRD debuts, following an acclaimed film. Would it be able to start the year on a high or would this play struggle to light a flame?

Based on the memoir by Sergey Fetisov, FIREBIRD is set in Soviet-occupied Estonia in the 1970s and tells the true story of fighter pilot Roman and soldier Sergey, who fall in love during the Cold War. Having to navigate their feelings for each other and the repercussions anyone discovering their relationship might have, the war isn’t the only battle they have to face in a climate not accepting of their forbidden love.
Using Peeter Rebane and Tom Prior’s screenplay from the 2021 film, Richard Hough has adapted the story for the stage, cramming the story into a singular 90 minute act. Though the quality of the writing is impressive in itself and the characters are full of intrigue and promise, that promise isn’t ever quite fully realised. It felt like scenes were missing, meaning that the action moved too quickly without giving enough room to breathe for us to be able to connect with these customers. As such, the emotional response was lacking even when the show does take a drastic turn in a subject that, ordinarily, would never fail to reduce me to tears.

These “missing scenes” are extremely noticeable and is the biggest obstacle in preventing FIREBIRD from reaching its full potential. The lack of breathing room in the story makes the play resemble a highlights package rather than a fully fleshed out story. I couldn’t help thinking during its climax how it would have benefited from an extra 20 minutes or so to fill in these gaps and allow the audience to connect to these characters in the way I longed to.
Owen Lewis’ direction makes use of the space in this intimate theatre like I have never seen before, maximising every opportunity and making the story feel grander than the space suggests while crucially retaining the necessary intimacy. A stunning use of lighting from Clancy Flynn is used in an inspired way during a climactic scene focusing on Sergey (Theo Walker), beautifully channelling the intensity of the moment and doing its best to make up for the gap in the writing at this pivotal moment.

Though some of the limitations in the writing prevents natural character development, the cast of four all prove talented in their own right, making the most of the situation and delivering solid performances. Sorcha Kennedy gives no shortage of intrigue in the underused and often side-lined Luisa Jannsen, again highlighting the potential FIREBIRD has going for it. Though his stage time is comparatively limited, Nigel Hastings gives a delightful turn as Col. Alexei Kuznetsov, providing some comic relief in parts while retaining a commanding sense and seriousmess the role demands.
The main draw of FIREBIRD is in the love story between the two main characters. As 2nd Lt. Roman Matvejev, Robert Eades is full of charisma with a playful side at odds with the inner turmoil his character is facing, though again I felt this needed to be delved into slightly more to explore the richness of the character rather than one that isn’t quite as multi-dimensional as I would have hoped, through no fault of Eades himself, of course.

The cast is completed by Theo Walker, delivering by far the standout performance of the night as Pte. Sergey Serebrennikov. Benefitting from being the most fleshed out character of the four, Walker gets to delve into the varying sides of the character, displaying anguish and heartbreak in a convincing way in the performance that comes closest to lifting the material to the level it belongs. An utterly charismatic performer, it is often impossible to take your eyes off of him as his expressive reactions tend to tell more of a story than the dialogue itself.
FIREBIRD is a play with plenty of potential but my mild frustration was the fact it struggles to utilise it. Though the story and execution of it is pleasant enough and some of the performances manage to elevate the play, I got the sense that it was very easy for this show to be far stronger than it currently is. Though it is fair to say it didn’t quite light a fire under me, it is still decent enough in its current form though it’s clear to see this could be something special with just the most minor of tweaks. Still an enjoyable night in the theatre and a great use of the newly reconfigured space at the King’s Head Theatre, hopefully setting it up for a year of exciting productions.

FIREBIRD plays at King’s Head Theatre until 9th February. Tickets from www.kingsheadtheatre.com
Photos by Geraint Lewis