The ride of my life!
The 2009 Canadian musical Ride The Cyclone has become a bit of a cult classic, having played all around the world (including Off-Broadway, Sydney and Buenos Aires). Now, sixteen years on and the show is finally getting its Off-West End premiere at London’s Southwark Playhouse, Elephant.
Written by Jacob Richmond and Brooke Maxwell, Ride The Cyclone tells the story of six school students, who as part of their choir, go to the fairground in their home town of Uranium City, Saskatchewan.
But a catastrophic accident on one of the rides kills everyone onboard and throws them in to purgatory.
Karnak (think Zoltar) – the fairground mechanical fortune teller, has the power to bring one soul back to life. But first they must all plead their case as to why they are most worthy. And they’d better do it fast before the evil rat Virgil munches through the cables and renders the fortune teller dead.
This cast are one of the best ensemble of performers that I have seen in a while. Each person is a shining beacon of pure talent and rising stars in the making. They look like a real group of friends who have known each other forever.
Ocean Rosenberg (played by Baylie Carson) – a Derry Girls-esq character, consumed in her own teenage life and certain that she is clearly the most deserving soul to be saved. She’s willing to do whatever it takes to win, even if it means throwing her best friend Constance (Robyn Gilbertson) under the bus.
Noel Gruber (Damon Gould) is the only gay in Uranium. He has a post war french alter-ego called Monique – a hooker with a heart of black charcoal and sexual provocateur. Noel dreams of a more exciting life proclaiming “I want to be that fucked up girl”.
Mischa Bachinski (Bartek Kraszewski) is a Ukrainian teenager and YouTube rap artist. “This Song Is Awesome” uses a brilliant autotune effect and the whole thing is hilarious and ridiculous in equal parts. I could have watched it over and over again. His online fiancé Talia may or may not exist but Mischa doesn’t really seem to mind either way.
Comic book loving Ricky Potts (Jack Maverick) didn’t speak in the real world after witnessing his father being murdered. He finds his voice in the afterlife and laments on his science fiction dreams of rescuing a sexy cat woman in “Space Age Bachelor Man”. Again, hilarious and ridiculous and reminiscent of something from The Book of Mormon.
Edward Wu as the mechanical fortune teller Karnack is brilliant. Up on the top of the stage for the whole show, he never breaks character (evening when you can’t really see him).
Jane Doe (Grace Galloway) – the headless victim of the fairground disaster, whose identity was never known after she died. She was dressed in the same school uniform but no one knew her. Her song “The Ballad of Jane Doe” is a beautiful operatic aria, searching for an identity.
Lizzie Gee‘s choreography is insane, with some of the most inventive moves I’ve seen in a while. It was fresh and new and invigorating.
The costumes by Ryan Dawson-Laight were wonderfully creepy and gave the whole show an eerie edge – helped by Dominic Skinner’s make-up design.
I’d love to see the show transfer in to the West End and there is certainly a market for this to become a new fan favourite. With brilliant performances and a wonderful production, this show left me beaming from ear to ear, full of excitement, having had the ride of my life!
★★★★★
West End Wilma
Photos by Danny Kaan
