Review: Monstering the Rocketman (Arcola Theatre)

Review by Daz Gale

⭐️⭐️

He may have retired from touring, but Elton John is back in London this week… sort of. Following a critically acclaimed, award-winning season at last year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the London premiere of Monstering the Rocketman rocks up at the Arcola Theatre for a recollection of Britain’s biggest-ever libel suit, but would this production be the same it was at home (well, Edinburgh) and soar like a Rocket Man, or burn out its fuse alone and come crashing back down to Earth?

Monstering the Rocketman is based on the true story of the libel suit between Elton John and The Sun newspaper. When the trashy tabloid falsely accuses the legendary singer of “sordid rent boy sex sessions”, Elton refuses to let The Sun go down on him, and responds with a whopping multi-million-pound lawsuit. As the newspaper does what it can to bring him down, the production suggests more concerning reasons for their actions against him, but ultimately it’s a fight they can’t win, with Elton still standing better than he ever did.

Writer and performer Henry Naylor is quick to point out that not everything in this production will be true, but fittingly nor is everything in The Sun. It’s a strong note to start on, quickly setting the tone and transporting us to the 1980s, where homophobia ran rampant, and journalists were able to bug celebrities' private property without being held accountable. At least we have made some progress 40 years later, not much, but some. Naylor recounts the battle between the star and The Sun, taking on all characters including a green new journalist who is quickly nicknamed “Lynx”, determined to get his name on a byline and given the task to follow Elton, his unethical and unrepentant editor, Kelvin Mackenzie, as well as Elton himself and the various people they meet along the way.

This one-man show can immediately be compared to KENREX in some respects, in that it is based on a true story, with one man taking on every role, but that is where the similarities end. Where that other show is slick, Monstering the Rocketman is far too uneven and chaotic. Naylor is at his best when he is portraying the character of “Lynx”, the storyteller behind this, with the show similarly at its best as it looks at things from his perspective. This is where things get a bit messy, as every description of the production focuses more on his editor, Kelvin Mackenzie, someone whose appearances may be memorable but fleeting. It is when Naylor attempts to portray Elton that things sag significantly, with no real differentiation between characters (even a pair of glasses would have helped) and a caricature assessment that seems to do the larger-than-life legend a real disservice.

Though there is an undeniable charm to Naylor as a performer, this particular performance didn’t showcase him at his best, with repeated stumbling on lines making it feel extremely under-rehearsed. At one point, Naylor himself commented “I shouldn’t have written that line” - though I respected his candor, it showcased a lack of confidence in the material that I sadly agreed with. The writing was too uneven throughout, with jokes thrown into an extremely muted response. Ultimately, they just weren’t funny, and Naylor looking pleased with himself at several of the ones that fell flat made the whole thing feel that much more awkward.

The biggest issue with the writing is it doesn’t seem to know what story it wants to tell. Flitting back and forth, I wondered if this was a story about Elton, the new journalist, journalism in the 80s in general, or something bigger? Naylor had the perfect opportunity to fill Monstering the Rocketman with serious themes such as the homophobia in the media in the 1980s (particularly in The Sun) and the general disgusting attitude to AIDS - however, both of these subjects are inserted suddenly, with no build-up and no reference after. These are seeds that should have been planted - this can still be a comedy if it wants to be, but surely there was a far more serious message to talk about here? It feels like this is more a first draft of the play than the finished version, and is in desperate need of tightening up before its next iteration - another example of its uneven output is a  last-second comparison to social media these days and how we are all editors that feels extremely clumsy and shoehorned in.

Where this show may have thrived in Edinburgh, there seems to be a fundamental lack of understanding of the space it is in now, with too many aspects overlooked, mostly due to Darren Lee Cole’s direction. There has been little consideration for the setup at Arcola, with the audience surrounding the stage on three sides, unlike its previous configuration in Edinburgh. Differing projections of various headlines and frint pages on either side of the stage lack any impact with only one side of the audience able to see both at any given time - I was on a side where one of them was completely blocked, rendering their use irrelevant. With the Arcola being a relatively intimate space, a microphone may not be necessary, but the decision to have Naylor repeatedly whispering lines to one side of the audience demonstrated a massive oversight for the other side who could barely hear what he was saying. Far more care and attention to detail needed to be given to the direction, as the lack of understanding of the space it is in is a big reason why this production didn’t land as smoothly as it did at the Fringe last year.

I was very intrigued when I saw the description of Monstering the Rocketman. I find myself equally fascinated by newspapers’ attitudes to gay (or suspected gay) celebrities in the 1980s and 1990s, and have been horrified by some of the headlines. This play had an opportunity to right the wrongs from the past, rewrite history while recounting it, and spread an important message about tolerance, compassion and understanding. However, it’s a sad, sad situation as this production squanders all of that with messy, uneven and frustrating writing that does a disservice to both the star it speaks of, and the clearly talented individuals working on this show. I think it’s gonna be a long long time before Naylor strikes the right tone to make Monstering the Rocketman the show it ought to be, but with a bit of love I'm confident there will come a day where I'll be able to tell everybody how wonderful life is with this show in the world.

Monstering the Rocketman plays at Arcola Theatre until 21st February. Tickets from https://allthatdazzles.londontheatredirect.com/play/monstering-the-rocketman-tickets

Photos by Steve Ullathorne