Review: Cheating Death at The Cockpit Theatre
A theatrical performance that kicks off with a body lying in an open coffin may not seem the most promising subject for a jolly night out.
For a ‘corpse’ to awake, smart-suited and booted in funereal best, awaiting visiting mourners before being carted off to the crematorium is the stuff of nightmares. Especially if you’re the corpse.
But, trust me, this black comedy provides plenty of laughs.
Cheating Death’s plot packs as many twists and turns as Barnier’s Brexit backstop negotiations.
A clutch of unlikely characters collide in a farcical romp that explores sex, lust, greed, exploitation and violence. Not to mention murder (attempted), infidelity (admitted), internet dating (check out Babes Abroad), shadowy Russians, a buttoned-up Brit, his scheming viper of a girlfriend and a much married housekeeper.
Playwright Max Nowaz places four times wed Mrs Short firmly in the action, if only to offer tea, sympathy and homespun wisdom and indulge in breezy optimism and a passion for Prada shoes.
Nicola Mae Begley gives an assured pinny-clad performance as Mrs Short, despite the fact this is her first professional role. She’s the perfect foil for the inept Englishman John, played by Alex Pitcher, who finds himself prematurely encased in a creaking wicker casket for the impending funeral.
Lucy Beresford Knox put in a poisonous performance as his money-grabbing unfaithful girlfriend planning to cash in before the body is barely cold.
Frankie Hyde-Peace’s sexy, scheming Russian seductress Katy necks tequila shots _ in the absence of vodka _ with enthusiasm and delivers one-liners with a credible accent.
All the cast, plus director Sophie Wilson, have trained at The Poor School, a drama centre in King’s Cross, to put on this three act drama at The Cockpit in Marylebone, playing until March 10.
It’s a friendly space, with a decent bar and a receptive audience _ apart from the corporate financial lawyer who chatted and crunched crisps until shushed into silence.
The play sometimes lacks pace but, as the corpse rises like Lazarus, so do the laughs.
- Cheating Death by Max Nowaz is now showing at The Cockpit, Gateforth Street, Marylebone, NW8 8EH. Book online at thecockpit.org.uk or phone 0207 258 2925. Tickets: £15; concessions £10. 7.30pm; matinees 3pm Thursday March 7 and on last day Sunday March 10.
