Hampstead Theatre, London – until 12 July 2025
Reviewed by Celia Armand Smith
4*****
As soon as I sat down in the theatre, I looked up and saw a figure in white walking across a net ceiling high above the stage, and I knew this show was going to be unlike any other. Dickie Beau’s unique approach and interpretation of theatre is like no other and there is something otherworldly about the figure standing in the middle of the stage. At its core, Showmanism is a multi-layered history of acting and human connection. Lip synching doesn’t seem like the right word for what Dickie Beau achieves even though that is what he is doing. It’s not big enough, or powerful enough. What he achieves is an embodiment of character and of self.
Through recordings, Beau channels some of the most iconic figures of stage and screen. Interviews with familiar voices such as an McKellen and Fiona Shaw form the backbone of the narrative, with their recorded voices brought vividly to life through Beau’s meticulous and emotive performance. Every single movement and action in Jan-Willem van den Bosch’s production is done with precision. Other voices include the impressionist Steve Nallon who talks about not being able to imitate David Cameron, the spiritual teacher and author Ram Dass (who I could listen to for hours), and Patsy Rodenburg who questions Beau and challenges him to use his own voice in the show. This becomes a haunting refrain as the boundaries between the actor and the stage are interrogated and broken down. History, philosophy, and anecdotes of lives lived and performed all interweave and overlap in a joyful and humorous dance of body and voice.
Visually, like the rest of the show, the production is mesmeric and pin sharp. Justin Nardella’s set and video design is full of symbolism and theatrical artefact with flickering TVs, a bathtub with an orange tree growing out of it, the skull from Hamlet, and a ladder off which Beau suspends himself. So many small and perfect details. Marty Langthorne’s lighting, as with everything else, is simple and beautiful – a strip of light transforms the stage into an elevator which transports us from voice to voice.
Ultimately, Dickie Beau’s Showmanism is a profound and extremely rare theatrical treat. You really feel like you have experienced something very special. Once again, Beau has delivered a masterclass on what theatre could and should be