Leicester Square Theatre – until 21 September, followed by a UK tour
Reviewed by Julia Spargo
4****
I am less familiar with Hamlet, being a Macbeth or comedies girls myself, and after two hours in the company of Sh!tfaced Shakespeare, I am not convinced I am any more familiar with Shakespeare’s longest play. I did, however, have a lot of fun.
The premise of Sh!tfaced Shakespeare is that the main cast member of the production is spectacularly drunk, propped up by a small but sober cast, who must be prepared to go off-piste, ad-lib, rein in the madness and keep to time. Some might question the morals of supporting irresponsible drinking but the programme is keen to highlight that as the cast is rotated, the main actor is never required to drink (for the purpose of the show) more than four times in a month; “this makes us the most sober cast of actors you are likely to find in the West End!” Fair enough.
The show started with the compere, a very witty and sardonic Charlie Keable, explaining the basis of the production, and showing the empties consumed by that night’s Hamlet, Jamie Sandersfield, in preparation for the performance. This made me feel a little uncomfortable. Audience members were engaged in holding musical instruments to be used during the show and a reluctant man seated in the front row was tasked with holding a bucket which may be needed for bodily secretions during the course of the performance. I braced myself. The compere explained he would carry an airhorn, which he would use to bring the inebriated actor back on track if he went too rogue.
And rogue, he did. The airhorn was deployed multiple times throughout the two hours, with warnings about keeping to time, the subject matter, and at one point, a question, ‘Hands up if you are supposed to be in this scene’. Claudius and Gertrude raised their hands confidently. A sheepish looking Hamlet skulked backwards, exit stage right.
Assuming that every night on stage, this production will look very different, I was impressed by the small cast, simple set changes, lack of props (a joke about which started a discussion about how much actors get paid, yes, in the middle of the performance), and use of modern pop songs performed in a medieval style. Muse by lute, anyone?
A set choreographed piece featuring Michael Jackson’s Thriller, The Cranberries’ Zombie and the theme tune from Ghostbusters had me in hysterics, along with the on-stage participation of an unsuspecting audience member, who was so good, they brought him back for more.
Sh!tfaced Shakespeare is complete mayhem. It’s like watching a chaotic amateur dramatics company in early rehearsals after they’ve spent all day in the pub. The beauty is that the audience is in on the joke, and invited to revel in the madness. That we did. A great, fun couple of hours. Knowing that the anarchy of last night can’t be replicated, I might even go again.