Hercules

Review by Sam

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Bless My Soul, Disney’s Hercules has travelled straight from Mount Olympus to Theatre Royal Drury Lane in this electrifying new family musical!

Based on the beloved hit 1997 film, Hercules is a laugh-a-minute new comedy telling the story of a half-man, half-god who must go from Zero to Hero to save the world from his villainous uncle Hades. Exquisitely directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw, with music by Disney Legend Alan Menken, this stage adaptation is as big, loud and camp as the West End gets! It's a snappy, fun and joyous new musical for all the family which will leave you with a huge grin on your face. The set design by Dane Laffrey is pure theatrical bliss, cleverly using beautiful video design and track movement to seamlessly move the story through scenes. This incredible staging is some of the Disney Theatricals best to date, making the entire theatre feel as if it has been transported straight to the Magic Kingdom.

Written by Robert Horn and Kwame Kwei-Armah, the musical features a brand-new book with a highly whimsical and comical approach to the material. Horn's previous work on Shucked can be seen throughout the text, as he leans into pun heavy humour which remains delightfully fun. However, the combination of this style of script with story causes the show to have an almost pantomime-esque quality to it, with Stephen Carlile in particular leaning heavily into their performance and dialling up the camp-quirkiness of Hades.

Whilst the entire ensemble is God-like in their excellence, the standout of the entire production is the show-stopping, 5-strong muses. They narrate the story and guide Hercules on his quest with killer harmonies and a dominating stage presence which leaves audiences with their jaws on the floor at the end of Act 1.

Hercules is certainly not Disney's strongest material to date, however as a production the show is exquisite in its craft. Through incredible performances and magical staging, this show will surely go the distance to be the next big family musical in London!