An entertaining and thought-provoking show

Oh What A Lovely War! Studio Theatre Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe Review: Jo Wood

JOAN Littlewood's Oh What A Lovely War! follows the bloody history of the First World War with a cast dressed in Pierrot costumes.

Far from making it trivial this unusual costume choice is effective. Every actor has to wear a variety of hats (literally), playing several roles, in various accents, jumping from one to the other and back again.

The wartime songs are familiar and poignant as well as rousing. It is absolutely an ensemble piece with no one spending long in the dressing rooms, so it seems a bit unfair to single out anyone, but Larry Fabian opens the show, addressing the audience with consummate ease.

From then it's a seamless blend of music hall style numbers and sketch scenes set in the trenches.

Behind the action a back screen projection shows original posters and slogans from the Great War, as well as stark facts about each battle and how many thousands of dead resulted, until you just can't believe that any more men could die before someone makes it all stop.

Without needing to make a judgement on the generals in command, this play is immensely effective at showing the futility of the war to end all wars. I don't know about you but if I watch a modern war film not many people have to die bloodily, with incredibly clever use of CGI and the latest make-up, before I begin to be anaesthetised and immune to the horror of it all.

This play does not allow you to become accustomed to death. Somehow the bawdy songs and humour throw the unimaginable carnage into stark relief, until we can hardly bear it. Jay Moore's chilling portrayal of the monstrous general Haig will live on in my nightmares.

All credit to Lee Baxendale for producing a show so unlike the cabarets and sit-coms we associate him with. He may well have been out of his comfort zone but the results speak for themselves.