Waldo’s Circus Of Magic And Terror At The Mast Mayflower Studio, Southampton Review

Reviewed by Maddie Reynolds

Wow what a show!! Who doesn’t love a show full of Magic and acrobatics, an outstanding performance from a diverse cast of people who love to perform.

We parked just across the road from the Mast Mayflower Studio and paid £3 to park for the evening. This is a bargain as parking can be so expensive these days when your enjoying a night out. Traffic into Southampton was quiet from Bournemouth and we arrived within in plenty of time.

We were seated in the stalls E19, E20, E21, E22, we had a brilliant view of the whole stage and set which looked like a circus tent. We received our E-tickets well in advance with an email letting us know if we needed anything to just speak to them when we arrived.

I have never been to Mast Mayflower before I wasn’t even aware of it until I looked up the location on tickets I thought it was part of the actual theatre.

The Mast itself was a new build and beautifully laid out with a reception and bar area upstairs with lots of space. Where we were sat we had plenty of leg room and space.

We were excited too see the show as we didn’t know what to expect. When we arrived next to the bar area there was staff from Waldo’s production they had tables set up with interactive props and cards which were all linked to the show. You could answer these before and after the show. We filled in some of these and our answers changed after the show it was a really interesting way of looking at a show and being able to interact with it.

We then went to the next table where we were given a free programme that was laid out with pictures and opened up like a map. We were able to read about the show and the characters and get an understanding of the show before it started as we knew very little about it.

A game changer for us was they had headsets available for us, which told us what was going on whilst watching the show. My daughter loves the theatre and has Autism and sometimes struggles to process what is being said. I got a headset for her which at first she was reluctant to use but once set up and it started to work, she used it throughout the show, definitely a big hit and would benefit many others in shows who have Special Educational Needs. It was a relaxed performance, and the lighting was dimmed, we haven’t needed to attend these before but can see why they are suited to people with Learning Disabilities, we would attend one again if it was a performance we wanted to see.
The cast was amazing and all played their parts with so much enthusiasm and passion, it was great to see a cast with varying disabilities performing and doing what they love and having the stage and set adapted to cater for all their needs. This is a new production company that perform this called Extraordinary Bodies, it was developed around true stories and has a large number of artists and creators who are deaf, disabled and non-disabled. Throughout the performance, the characters use British Sign Language and spoken word.

The show was based on a true story and set in 1933 in Brandenburg Germany, The Nazis are suspending civilian rights but Waldo wants is his circus to carry on and the show must go on, however, he lands in some financial difficulty and makes a deal with the Nazis will they escape in time???

The music and the singing throughout was spectacular Krista played by Abbie Purvis was the star of the circus and the main attraction, the circus is her home and her family and is the only place she felt safe. She was funny and sassy throughout the performance and sang her heart out about her own disability and how the world around her was changing.

Another character that stood out for me was Mish, she delivered a beautiful performance after her best friend and partner in crime clown friend Mosh was killed by the Nazis, and how they were coming for them one by one and wanted all people with disabilities sterilized It was all done in British sign language and was so powerful to watch her perform this, there were subtitles available on the screens which were there during the performance to tell the story and be a visual for the audience.

After she performed this via Sign language alone, the cast then came onto the stage and sang the song Mosh had performed.

The cast had high energy throughout the performance and there were many funny moments, Mish and Mosh brought so much humour to the show.

Extraordinary Bodies is a charity that champions diversity and equality in performing arts, This production team and its creators really showed that we can all work together and that anyone can perform and work equally together on and off stage. The music is written by Hattie Naylor and Jamie Beddard with original score by Charles Hazelwood (Paraorchestra)

Rating: 5 out of 5

Tickets range from £10.00 to £17.50

This show ran at the Mayflower Mast studio between 4th May and 6th May
It is touring around different locations across the country and I would definitely recommend going to see it if you get the chance

MAST Mayflower Theatre 142-144 above bar street, Southampton SO14 7DU

www.mayflowerstudios.org.uk
02380711833