★★★
Romance, power, and mystery. That's what Hercule Poirot promises when he sets up Murder on the Orient Express… it certainly sounds promising, but things never really get on track.
Photo by Manuel Harlan
Black backdrops reduce the huge stage, hoping to zoom in on a roll call of characters - a Princess travelling with an anxious missionary, a Countess who trained in medicine before her marriage, an American secretary trying to keep a leash on his bolshie boss… but instead, it swamps them. They become caricatures, adopting accents that sound like impressions, two-dimensional figures spinning dated jokes and predictable 1930s commentary as tragedy strikes on the train from Istanbul.
At the centre of the Agatha Christie adaptation is, of course, the grounded Poirot. Michael Maloney plays the self-assured and self-indulgent Belgian detective with bravado getting a rouse from the original fans in the audience. However, Lucy Bailey's direction feels a bit show and tell, reducing the mystery. Poirot declares he has found a handkerchief, then a broken watch, while Bob Barrett as Monsieur Bouc cheers enthusiastically declaring he’s “glad the murder has been solved”.
An ensemble cast of 10 do what they can in this adaptation by Ken Ludwig, but they move like Cluedo pieces, talking only about the slow-burning plot and scratching the surface of their colourful pasts. There are however some fun performances from Christine Kavanagh as firecracker Helen Hubbard and Debbie Chazen as Princess Dragomiroff, and the bookending scenes of featuring contemporary movement (directed by Leah Hausman) are thrilling.
The central and only set piece (designed by Mike Britton) comprises compartments of a train that slot together to create hallways or open up to show inside the rooms. The manoeuvring at this performance is clunky and leads to long interludes of darkness - admittedly these are scored beautifully - but the result is like being on a local stopping train, with scenes being ground to a halt and having to pick up speed again. In its final push, the second half seems to flow better with carriages opening up to bars and interrogation rooms. With some refining, it could be really beautiful.
Britton's costumes paired with Elizabeth Marini's wigs, hair and makeup hint to the glitz and glamour of the famed transportation. While Oliver Fenwick's lighting adds a lovely glow to the small space it is restricted to. It’s difficult to believe Michel (Jean-Baptiste Fillon) when he talks frantically about heavy snow, and the consequent loss of power and heat when not a thing changes visually. Christie's story leaves audiences imagining shivering in minks and fright under candlelight but it isn't realised on stage.
Unfortunately, this ride has the thrill of a crawler train.
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