Review: Silence! The Musical (Turbine Theatre)

Review by Daz Gale

⭐️⭐️⭐️

What would make The Silence Of The Lambs better? If, instead of silent, they were singing, of course. That is where we begin one of the most ridiculous concepts for an unauthorised parody musical seen in a good while. Having completed a successful stint at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe, it now travels to London for a short season at the Turbine Theatre. Would London audiences eat this musical up just as much or would it leave a bad taste in their mouths?

Based on the Academy Award-winning film from 1991, Silence! The Musical began its life off-Broadway in 2005, first being seen in London in 2009. It follows the plot of The Silence of The Lambs whereby FBI trainee Clarice Starling enlists the help of everyone’s favourite cannibalistic serial killer Hannibal Lecter in an attempt to stop another serial killer (they really are like buses…)  by the name of buffalo Bill and save his latest victim, whose name I forget.

Sticking closely to the plot of the original story, Silence! adds a lot more absurdity to the situations, finding the funny in all of the serious and surreal moments, imprinted in the memories of anyone who has ever watched the movie. While the subject matter may be a bit too dark and therefore not a natural fit for a silly parody, Hunter Bell does a great job of this in his book, recreating the plot but finding the funny throughout. If you like your parodies silly and explicit, there is much to love about Silence!

While the humour did cause some laugh out loud moments, there was nothing that caused my sides to split with the sense that they were using low-hanging fruit and hadn’t really thought outside of the box when it came to the jokes. I sat in my seat thinking of sight gags that could have been easily implemented, creating an easy laugh, but these missed opportunities were far too common. Essentially, I just wanted the whole thing to be a lot more stupid, and for all of its silliness, it never quite crossed the line into the ridiculous territory I usually love with parodies such as this.

The music and lyrics from Jon and Al Kaplan, while pleasant enough, don’t tend to add much to the parody, taking the most paper-thin of premises and turning it into a full-blown song which ends up outstaying its welcome more often than not, These often turn out to be repetitive, using the tried and tested technique of using iconic lines of dialogue from the movie and having it sung over and over again for several minutes. This worked at its best the first time it occurred on with the outrageously explicit early musical number ‘If I Could Smell Her C***’, an addictively catchy earworm of a song, which I had to remind myself not to sing out loud on the walk back to the station. However, the impact felt more and more reductive as it was wheeled out later on, with later number ‘I’d F*** Me’ and ‘Put The F***ing Lotion In The Basket’  a lazy rehash of an idea  that too often felt like a one trick pony. A special mention has to go to ‘My Daughter Is Catherine’ which was a point of difference in its comedic nature and showed the potential that was lacking elsewhere.

One thing that can’t be faulted is the cast, led by Phoebe Panaretos as Jodie Fos… sorry, I mean Clarice. Perfectly tapping into the comedy of the role, she always manages to find the funny with a star turn demanding all eyes on her. Jake Anthony gives an over-the-top, exaggerated performance of Buffalo Bill bringing some hilarity to what should be an unsettling role, and showcasing his own talents as a performer. Catherine Millsom delivers an unforgettable performance as the fittingly named Catherine, while Jenay Naima may have a seemingly inconsequential role as Ardelia, but boy does she do the most with it, showcasing incredible vocals which were as tasty as some fava beans and a nice Chianti.

The performance you will talk about upon leaving the theatre comes from Mark Oxtoby with his inappropriately delightful take on Lecter. Though his stage time is more limited than you would like, every appearance from him delivers an absolute feast, with note-perfect comedy, acting and vocals once again demonstrating the true star Oxtoby is. Always leaving you wanting to see more from him, Oxtoby successfully lifts the inconsistent production when it is in danger of flagging.

If an unauthorised parody musical of The Silence Of The Lambs featuring all-singing, tap dancing lambs doesn’t seem like the most obvious idea for a fun show, Silence! attempts to prove you wrong. While it manages to raise smiles and prove itself to be highly enjoyable, it misses the mark in other opportunities, never quite feeling as fleshed out as it could have been. Not quite the killer show it could have been but one I’m glad I caught nonetheless. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have an incredibly inappropriate and explicit song to knock out of my head.

Silence! The Musical plays at the Turbine Theatre until 28th September. Tickets from www.theturbinetheatre.com

Photos by Mark Senior