★★★★✰
The Gunpowder Plot is often associated with conspirator Guy Fawkes, but new production Treason The Musical chooses to take an alternative look at the plot’s history, with the story being centred around the less well known Thomas Percy (Bradley Jaden) and the other plotters within the group.
The musical first made its debut in March 2021 with a live streamed concert performance, instantly building a fanbase. Over a year on, Treason The Musical, accompanied by the fantastic London Musical Theatre Orchestra, makes its West End Debut at Theatre Royal Drury Lane as part of the theatre’s summer concert series.
The play begins with a wedding between Thomas and Martha Percy (Carrie Hope Fletcher) accompanied by a tight-knit Catholic community of friends and family. We quickly learn that anti-Catholic laws have existed under the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, but with the monarch’s health deteriorating, this gives Catholic practicising people a new hope that their suffering will end.
This yearning for freedom is illustrated with the superb ‘All We Dreamed & More’ and the transition of monarchical power is told with the catchy ‘The Day That Elizabeth Died.’ However, when it becomes clear that King James I (Daniel Boys) will continue Elizabeth’s intolerance, Robert Catesby (Simon-Anthony Roden) delivers Thomas Percy an ultimatum: is he going to continue to hope for a peaceful solution, or is he going to join a revolutionary plot?
Thomas Percy’s unequivocal devotion to his faith and his commitment to a better life for Catholics is portrayed fantastically by Jaden, and his relationship with Martha is highly emotive and striking. Carrie Hope Fletcher delivers a spectacular vocal performance as Martha Percy, and ballad ‘The Inevitable’ is one of the highlights of the night.
Another poignant moment is the all women performance of ‘Caught In The Crossfire’ that highlights how the history books detail the actions of men but often neglect the roles that women play within events.
Proceedings are narrated by grime poet Debris Stevenson, who delivers rhyming couplets with fierce precision. Stevenson’s narration guides us through the unravelling of historical events but also reminds us of the modern social divisions that exist within Britain today, with references to how history repeats itself. The rapping from the Narrator fuses surprisingly well with the rest of the score, which is a mix of folklore and energetic pop.
Labelled frequently as the ‘British Hamilton’, the musical does evidently copy ideas from Lin-Manuel Miranda’s sensation, with the character of King James I in Treason The Musical possessing similarities to Hamilton’s King George III.
Nevertheless, Daniel Boys delivers a hilariously captivating performance as King James, stealing the show with the vibrant ‘As Far as I Can Tell,’ which begins with him ordering the Narrator off of her barrel perch so he can have his moment in the spotlight.
Les Dennis, who plays the King’s advisor Robert Cecil, fosters an excellent comedic partnership with the monarch he counsels. Although his solo number ‘Paperwork’ feels slightly under-developed, a line referencing ‘prime ministerial Christmas parties’ in the middle of the song produces the biggest cheer from the audience of the night.
After such a build up, the unravelling of the gunpowder plot, which serves as the climax of the musical, does feel a little hurried. ‘The Cold, Hard, Ground’, a number towards the end of the musical that details Robert Catesby’s suffering, is compelling but it would perhaps work best in Act One to elevate its significance.
This is a musical that is still developing however, and while some tweaks are still needed in order for the show to fully flourish, Treason The Musical has a brilliant score that intertwines themes of extremism, social division and the importance of relationships. If this production secures a run in the West End, accompanied by full staging and a smoother book, Treason The Musical has the potential to triumph.
Words by Ester Scott
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