Not Dead Enough at the Mayflower Theatre Southampton Review
Not Dead Enough
Mayflower Theatre, Southampton
7-11 March 2017
Reviewed by Amy Adeliyi
I was looking forward to seeing the theatre production of ‘Not Dead Enough’ by Peter James. Peter James is a top selling crime and thriller novelist. I had read the first two books and hadn’t been able to put them down due to the gripping storylines and creative twists, I was looking forward to this playing out before my eyes.
The story opens on Katie Bishop chatting on her mobile and a shadowy figure standing behind her dragging her off stage to the sounds of her screaming ‘oh no not again’. It then cuts to the mortuary and has a lighter feel than expected, with humour between Cleo (Laura Whitmore) and Sophie (Gemma Atkins) when a cadaver awakens to answer their mobile phone! The plot centres around Roy Grace (Shane Ritchie) solving the mystery of three murders, one suspect, no proof. The plot kept you on the edge of your seat and gripped to the next piece of evidence to try and solve the crimes.
The nine cast members were great, with believable characters and a seemingly effortless rapport with each other on stage. Shane Ritchie stole the show with his portrayal of the hardworking detective superintendent Roy Grace, although Glenn Branson’s (Michael Quartey) one liners also gave the audience a lighter tone.
The set was well thought out with the back stage as the mortuary, equipped with freezers, post mortem tables and equipment. To the left of the stage was a haphazard police office with two desks (under the stacks of paperwork), to the right of the stage was a police interview room. The front of the stage was also used for late night beach scenes. This does sound rather confusing, however the focus was expertly directed by the lighting used on each area.
The Mayflower Theatre is close to rail links and we found a multi-story car park close by. Southampton can be busy to get in and out of and its worth ensuring you have plenty of time for traffic.
The theatre itself is very clean and the interior looked fresh and well maintained. The Mayflower was well staffed with plenty of helpful friendly ushers, although the bar looked very busy in the interval with many rushing out of their seats before the curtains had fully dropped to ensure they had time to purchase refreshments. It was quite cold in the first half of the production, which ironically added to the ambience of the mortuary scenes, however did appear to warm up in the second half.
I thoroughly enjoyed the production and the actors drew us into the plot with their believable characters, I wouldn’t hesitate in watching any future productions from Peter James.
Rating: 5/5 
Tickets cost from £22 to £34.50 (booking fees may apply).
Peter James’ Not Dead Enough is at the Mayflower Theatre in Southampton until 11 March 2017. For more information or to book tickets click here or call the box office on 02380 711811.
Mayflower Theatre, Commercial Road, Southampton, SO15 1GE | 02380 711811
