Review: Houdini's Greatest Escape (King's Head Theatre)

Review by Daz Gale

⭐️⭐️

Almost 100 years after Harry Houdini performed his final disappearing trick,  the answer to his last mystery may have been found as the legendary escapologist has turned up at the King’s Head Theatre in Islington of all places. However, this isn’t for a trick – instead, it is for the brand new show from award-winning theatre company New Old Friends, Houdini’s Greatest Escape. Would it be a much needed dose of theatre magic or did it make me feel like disappearing?

The premise of Houdini’s Greatest Escapes sees the great Harry Houdini and his wife Bess fighting it out with their rival, the medium Agatha, for a chance to play for King Edward. However, all doesn’t go to blame when the Houdini’s find themselves framed for murder. Having to deal with a gang of criminals involved with the police, how can they ever escape this one?

It’s fair to say that Houdini’s Greatest Escape is a show that will divide opinion. While there were many in the audience laughing their heads off (not literally. That would be a very different magic trick), others were, to put it nicely, less enthused by the whole affair. I can only talk about my own personal opinion and experience with the show and sadly I fell into the latter of the two categories.

My main gripe with the content of Houdini’s Greatest Escape was in the inconsistency of the narrative and storytelling. It set itself up as a comedy but I didn’t find it very funny at all, with the comedy itself feeling forced, unoriginal and falling flat more often than not. A couple of sight gags and a bit of physical comedy did fare better, bringing a smile on my face but this never erupted into laughter, with far more jokes missing than hitting. The story itself felt promising, boasting more plot and exposition than you might necessarily expect with a comedy such as this one. Perhaps that is what took away from the humour as the tone veered back and forth to serious plot point to silliness. I would have liked to have seen a bit more cohesiveness to weave these two separate strands together.

The other disappointing factor in this show was the magic in itself. Now I wasn’t expecting Harry Houdini himself or even Dynamo standard of magic, but for a show that boasts its inclusion as a big part of its story, the execution of these tricks was too subpar. This culminated in a clumsily staged climactic trick which, rather than impressing, let the already dwindling  quality of the play down.  The obvious comparison to this are Mischief Theatre whose Magic Goes Wrong ironically got it very right in its attempt to bring the worlds of magic and comedy together. Sadly, in this case, it did repeatedly go very wrong.

The hard-working cast of four keep the show going with talents that stretch far beyond the limitations of the material. Ben Higgins and Lydia Piechowiak are a formidable double act as married couple Harry and Bess Houdini and should be the stars of the show. However, they are both upstaged by their two co-stars who take on a never-ending revolving door of characters to prop up the story in a choice that draws obvious comparisons to The 39 Steps.

Kirsty Cox lit up the stage whenever she appeared, particularly shining in her roles of medium Agatha and Ma Barker. It was her ridiculously overblown turn as Nelly (an elephant) that was the funniest aspect of the night though. Of the four, the hardest working and standout belongs to Adam Elliott who took on every conceivable character under the sun from Houdini’s brother, a drunk policeman and all three of Ma Barker’s sons. A great comedic performer, his ability to interact with himself again felt stronger than the material warranted.

Houdini’s Greatest Escape was a bit too rough around the edges for my liking. While it has plenty of potential and boasts a great cast, the material in itself doesn’t feel quite finished, suffering from an identity crisis at times. While I wouldn’t go as far as say this show needs to disappear, it may need a bit of work before it returns for its next trick. With the right bit of care and attention, this could be great but in its current form it is seriously lacking in magic.

Houdini’s Greatest Escape plays at King’s Head Theatre until 30th June. Tickets from www.kingsheadtheatre.com

Photos by Pamela Raith