Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Theatre Royal Drury Lane - theatre review

Willy Wonka’s kingdom is realised in spectacular style in a tremendously inventive show where visual richness prevails over musical allure
Wonka wonder: Nigel Planer as Grandpa Joe, Douglas Hodge as Willy Wonka and other cast members of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Helen Maybanks
Henry Hitchings27 June 2014


This is the biggest homegrown musical of the year, and even if it doesn’t quite live up to the early hype it’s a tremendously inventive show. The industrious Oompa-Loompas are among its candy-coated pleasures, and the wizardry with which they’re brought to life is typical of a production that delights in its own cleverness.

Yet the poignancy of Roald Dahl’s classic story remains. David Greig’s book is faithful to the novel but from the outset emphasises the Dickensian poverty of its unassuming hero Charlie Bucket. We’re seduced by the suspense of waiting for chocaholic Charlie to win the golden ticket that will give him access to Willy Wonka’s factory and its marvels.

Four young actors are sharing the role of Charlie, and at the performance I saw it was imbued with charm and yearning by Jack Costello. Meanwhile the other winners – among them a Teutonic and titanic Augustus Gloop and a disturbingly hyperactive Mike Teavee – head with obnoxious confidence towards their inevitable fates.

The first half moves a bit too slowly. It begins with a montage of drawings by Quentin Blake before focusing on Charlie’s humdrum home life. Nigel Planer’s Grandpa Joe embodies the mix of hope and glumness – managing to be jovial despite having to share a bed with Charlie’s other grandparents.

It’s in the second half that the magic kicks in. Wonka’s kingdom is realised in spectacular style: amid the sugary cascades, death by chocolate seems an all too vivid prospect. In his tails and top hat, Douglas Hodge’s Wonka oozes a creepy sort of charisma. Even if he doesn’t eclipse the memory of Gene Wilder in the Seventies film, he brings vocal dexterity and a welcome note of danger to his role as this demented capitalist.

The score, by Hairspray creators Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, is efficient rather than stirring. Visual richness prevails over musical allure, with Mark Thompson’s design a parade of stunning backdrops and equally dazzling effects.

This isn’t as affecting or puckish a show as the other Roald Dahl adaptation currently gracing the West End, the magnificent Matilda. Sometimes it strays too far into sweet-toothed sentimentality, and there are not many surprises. But Mendes’s sense of spectacle impresses, and the soft-centred moments are unexpectedly delicious.

Until May 31, 2014, 0844 858 8877, charlieandthechocolatefactory.com

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