Review: How To Make A Mess (Upstairs at the Gatehouse)

Review by Molly Gulvin

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Nigella Lawson is a name that is known by so many people in the UK, she may as well be on the citizenship test. A well-known writer and television personality, her cookery books live on hundreds of thousands of shelves to this day, and her approach to cooking and the pleasure it can bring resonates amongst audiences. How To Make A Mess, making its full-length debut at Upstairs at the Gatehouse, aims to share this philosophy, offering a ‘joyful celebration of feeding yourself’. This musical explores more than just food, though: instead, it looks at how cooking can support us through hardship, and the small decisions that can change our lives for the better. Whilst there are many elements of promise to this production, there are a few parts of the recipe that might’ve needed a little longer in the test kitchen first.

How To Make A Mess centres on Anna (Natasha Karp), who loses her mother unexpectedly and has to deal with the unplanned arrival of grief in her hectic life. Upon returning home, she turns to Nigella’s original cookery book ‘How To Eat’, and in doing so, manifests an imaginary Nigella Lawson (Tanya Truman) to talk her through the book as she cooks. Through cooking, eating and a few well-placed pieces of advice from Nigella herself, Anna gradually discovers the joy of food and how she can regain autonomy in a life that seems to be pushing her around instead of the reverse.

Emily Rose Simons’ book and score vary in quality, but show an element of promise throughout. The book, in general, is strong, with witty and humorous comments scattered throughout. This might be the first show I’ve watched that came with a bibliography, but Simons’ care in sharing Nigella’s worldview is obvious and really seals the show as the ‘love letter’ it describes itself to be. Whilst the script spends a lot of time exploring Anna’s hardships, the passion for cooking and food still generally comes through.

Unfortunately, the score does not reach the potential it may have - whilst there are some moments of musical intrigue, particularly in the duets between Anna and Nigella, the songs felt fairly predictable. This isn’t to say that they were bad - in fact, each song individually would work as a perfectly fine number - but when combined, each song seemed to be stylistically similar and blend into one somewhat. The arrangements and musical direction from David Merriman help to push through the songs, though, with the choice to use keys, reeds and cello being suitable for every song within the show. 

Karp and Truman both deliver capable performances, and each actor truly commits to the role that they have been given. However, it feels as though the characters they portray are living in two different shows. Karp is emotive and raw as Anna, and her performance has depth and passion from start to end. On the other hand, Truman plays a caricature of Nigella that is upbeat at all times, finding comedic moments in every action. Whilst these two performances make for an entertaining watch, with each performer shining at separate moments, they are somewhat jarring on the (many) occasions that the performers are on stage together. The vocal performances, however, are lovely and deal with the musical material well. Karp and Truman have voices that work individually and also blend well as a pair, and each number is performed to a truly high standard.

With direction from Grace Taylor, How To Make A Mess has a creative vision: to share the joy and healing properties that food can have. In general, this vision is well-executed, and the dramatic beats of the show are paced well to add to the impact of this moral. This is particularly noticeable in the revelations of Anna’s story, which are given the time necessary to explore, but never feel like they drag the production. However, as previously discussed, there are elements of the performance that are yet to blend, particularly in the onstage performances, and some time spent on unifying these goals wouldn’t go amiss.

It’s a bold endeavour to ‘cook’ live on stage - although there are many unsubtle winks to the audience as a pre-prepared final dish is retrieved from another location - but How To Make A Mess does so well, thanks to the work of set and costume designer Christianna Mason and stage manager Matilda Wilkes. It’s also important to note that the production aims to offset the food wastage by matching their food costs in a donation to Food Bank Aid at the end of the production. Mason’s set is gorgeous and combines the familiarity of a home kitchen with the necessary tools for the production to make a true homely atmosphere. Whilst the costume design may be simpler, each costume is still fitting for the character and moment in the show. The lighting of this show, designed by Chris McDonnell, is perfectly reasonable and enhances the production rather than creating any outstanding moments in itself. Richard Carter’s sound design works in a similar way: neither element overwhelms the show but simply adds to the atmosphere that the production is aiming to create.

​How To Make A Mess does what it sets out to do: it takes you on a journey through food and how the healing nature of cooking can help us through our lives. However, in a way, the production suffers from exactly what it warns against: it contains every ingredient required, and executes the recipe exactly as written, but the final product needs a touch more personal care to really shine. With that being said, the musical is generally very promising, with a lot of things to enjoy. With a bit more time, this show can grow to become a musical that excels in its goals rather than simply meeting them.

How To Make A Mess plays at Upstairs at the Gatehouse until 28th June. Tickets available from https://upstairsatthegatehouse.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/1173670158/events/428765345

Photos by Danny Kaan