From the big screen in black and white to the West End stage in full colour, Young Frankenstein is bound to be a surefire smash hit because the cast, notably Hadley Fraser as Frederick Frankenstein, Lesley Joseph as Frau Blucher, Ross Noble as Igor, Dianne Pilkington as Elizabeth Benning, Summer Strallen as Inga, Patrick Clancy as Inspector Kemp and the role of the Hermit and lastly an exceptional Shuler Hensley as The Monster are doing what is expected of them and more so.
They, as an ensemble, are just firing on all cylinders delivering the brevity of wit, sarcasm and laugh out loud belly laughs that only Mel Brooks can write. The songs, especially Lesley’s performance of He Vas My Boyfriend, are comedy gold and as the musical quickly became a true homage to the slapstick movies of the 1930s combined with the fantastic and often beautifully shot horror movies of the same time period, it’s a perfect combination. Brooks has also made sure that some of the gags in the original movie are included and it was hoot so see them performed again.
A romp of a show that had the audience howling and cheering with laughter, fabulously silly and to quote a line from the show, “Walk this way” to the Garrick Theatre.
****
Young Frankenstein is at the Garrick Theatre, 2 Charing Cross Road, WC2H 0HH. Box office 0330 333 481. youngfrankenstein.com
Recommended for you
