‘Whose is This Mask I am Wearing?…’ The Grinning Man, Trafalgar Studios, London. 14.04.2018

So I received an invite to come up to London to see my sister who was working that weekend at an art exhibition. Knowing I would not be seeing her till the late afternoon, the sun was shinning and I decided to make a day of it…by booking a cheeky matinee.

I had visited these studios once before, it was based in Studio 2 when seeing Dessa Rose which is smaller than Studio 1. When entering the auditorium, you are immediately transported to the ‘Trafalgar Fair’ with signs and decorations to reflect, then when you enter the studio you are greeted to the biggest smile in London as the stage itself reflects a powerful Grin. It was great! I took my seat in Row C Seat 15, on the corner stage right it was a great view. I was able to see the full stage, only at times did some actors block others – but it didn’t take from the story. You even at times get close to the action!

The Grinning Man is the story of a horribly disfigured boy Grinpayne- whose mouth has been sliced at the edges by an unknown perpetrator, leaving a huge bloody gash. He is left to hide his face behind a mask. We learn how this all came to be: how he loses his mother, stumbled across a stranded baby, Dea, and is then was raised by a stranger, Ursus with his loyal wolf Mojo. Together this make-shift family make their living by telling Grinpaynes story through a puppet show. But outside the ‘freakshow,’ Grinpayne longs to know how he became the freak he is, and who is responsible.

Adapted from the 1869 novel by famous French writer Victor Hugo – who also wrote Les Miserable. Carl Grose and Tom Morris have created one of the most beautiful musicals this year has and will see. The story reads a line between tragedy and tragicomedy, dark in places but uplifting in others with the use of some stunning physical theatre work, puppetry and great sharp comic one-liners to get the audience chuckling.

What I loved the most was the puppetry , created by Finn Calowell, and Toby Olie, they have returned to work with Tom Morris following their many successes in theatre including Warhorse. Mojo the wolf is mesmerizing to watch, created by two performers (James Alexander Taylor, and Loren O’Dair) by controlling the head and the hind of the animal – the hind itself being the back legs of the performer herself. They both become the wolf and you really forget that the puppeteers are there, the diamond for eyes also reflects amazingly making it look so real! However Mojo wasn’t the only puppet on this stage, as both the young Grinpayne and Dea are first seen as puppets, brought to life through their adult selves again it was beautiful to watch. Puppetry at its best for sure, that I could watch over and over again.

Along with the puppetry the cast alone are just as unique:

Grinpayne – Louis Maskell

Dea – Claire Marie Hall (1^st Cover)

Ursus – Sean Kingsley

Barkilphedro – Julian Bleach

King Clarence – Jonathan Cobb (1^st Cover)

Queen Angelica – Julie Atherton

Josiana – Amanda Wilkin

Dirry-Moir – Mark Anderson

Trelaw/Orsic – Ewan Black

Mother/Quake – Sophia Mackay

Ensemble – Leo Elso, Christina Bloom.

Louis Maskell in the role of Grinpayne, there are no words that describe how much I loved his performance! For someone whose face is hidden throughout most of the performance, Louis shows what an actor can do through his eyes, and body, you watch him transform his body into a real life puppet at times – even when he wasn’t handling Young Grinpayne, it was amazing to watch. Along with this his voice was very well suited by the many songs created by Tim Phillips, Marc Teitler, Carl Grose, and Tom Morris. ‘Labyrinth’ for one is an intense delight, his range is so vast and wonderfully quirky, you are transported directly into the story and Grinpayne’s mind. Having watched his performance I really don’t understand as to why he wasn’t honoured with a Olivier Nomination this year – it was greatly deserved and should have been. I could watch him over and over again.

Acting alongside Louis was Claire Marie Hall, 1^st Cover of Dea, her rendition was stunning with a powerful voice, along with Louis it is hard to play a blind girl, Claire had no problem. Her love for Grinpayne was clearly displayed and you loved the relationship they both formed on stage. Their love also for their adopted father Ursus played by Sean Kingsley, a loving, kind father with a troubled passed that he tries to leave behind. Sean has a rough but warming tone to his voice which we see throughout the renditions of ‘Stars in the Sky.’

Then there was the royals, I was very happy to finally see Julie Atherton in a role – having missed her as Kate Monster in Avenue Q, she was perfect for the role of Queen Angelica , crazy but powerful all the same. She brought excellent comic moments to the role that worked well within the story. Her brother and sister Josina and Dirry-Moir played by Amanda Wilken and Marc Anderson were a great pair both together and independently. Marc in particular was great to watch, he had some brilliant innocent one liners, with a sweet innocence about him. Last but not least there was Julian Bleach in the role of the clown Barkilphedro, wicked, but so funny at the same time – he had excellent one liners and great audience interaction and times he resembled that of RiffRaff from Rocky Horror, it was hard for the audience not to love him at times – even if he had a ghastly side to him.

The whole ensemble comes to life, creating something magical and dark each night. From the very start you are transfixed to what you are watching, whether you’re in awe of the puppetry, set, songs, and actors there isn’t one thing you can’t not enjoyanything about this show. I am so happy that I managed to finally catch it – having extended for 3 weeks which is rightly deserved; it comes to a close on the 3^rd May. If I get the chance to get one last viewing before then, I will be a happy girl till then I have been listening to the few songs they have on Soundcloud.

If you are interested in catching this stunning show go to the main website here. You won’t be disappointed.