The Christmas Thing at Seven Dials Playhouse London Review
DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW
Reviewed by BC
‘The Christmas Thing’ is a masterclass display of talent, timing and improvisation. The amount of preparation and technical magic that goes on behind the scenes to create something that looks so off the cuff is no small feat… and this team pulled it on seamlessly! Tom Clarkson and Owen Visser are our cost host and writing Extraordinaires. They sing, dance, cut men out of coat hangers with pliers and so much more in a 2 hour show!
Let me set the scene. The Christmas thing is designed to be a game show that airs nowhere… and we are in the live studio audience of their Christmas special. Tom is our main host, interacting with the audience and driving the narrative of the show. You have the option to invite interaction, but it is not mandatory- there is a QR code you can scan upon entry to join the “live audience”, this will ask you some fun playful questions that may be referenced throughout the show, like your favourite Christmas film or a special talent you have (pro tip: don’t add a special talent you wouldn’t be happy doing on stage, I learnt the hard way…). Tom was such a welcoming presence on stage, he’s found the perfect balance between joking with the audience without mocking too hard. Also on stage, we have Owen- the tech wiz with a silly streak.
Even though Tom is doing most of the talking, don’t get it twisted. Owen is up and down, cracking out musical number after musical number and still making sure all the tech runs properly! It was a real treat to see… Now there is a third member of this cast, who didn’t make it onto the main poster (much to his disdain I’m sure), Puppet Steve plays a crucial part in the narrative of this story with a series of very serious and suspenseful warnings about the evil Christmas Krampus coming to steal the spirit of Christmas! Now, my views on this are somewhat divided. I LOVED the Krampus storyline, it was crazy and goofy and really added an air of whimsy to the show… what I felt was lacking was that puppet Steve was never actually seen in the flesh. I find what makes puppetry such a joy to see on stage is witnessing the mastery and skill before your eyes- I was mildly disappointed that he never made an appearance live, don’t get me wrong the audience are hardly neglected when it comes to wild surprises (I won’t spoil it for you) but I definitely wanted more puppet Steve!
Overall this was an awesome watch and I’m so glad I got the pleasure to see it (even if I did have to show off some HEINOUS rapping “skills” for all to see). I would definitely recommend bringing your friends and heading down to the Seven Dials playhouse for a night of festive fun! And lastly a big shout out to our stage manager/assistants who held the show together and made sure no one died, go you guys! 5/5 The Christmas Thing is at Seven Dials Playhouse from now until 21st December.
Rating: 5/5
Tickets from £24 For more information or to book tickets visit sevendialsplayhouse.ticketsolve.com.