Remember, Remember! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Gather around the bonfire, girlies. You think you know the story of the Gunpowder Plot? You don’t! Get ready for an incredibly misinformed, inaccurate retelling of one of Britain’s most infamous tales of treason. Expect hilarious songs, forbidden love and explosive action in this ridiculously camp new musical by WIT?”

Remember, Remember! takes one of Britain’s most infamous historical events, throws accuracy out of the window and replaces it with forbidden love, outrageous characters, catchy songs and enough camp to set off the Gunpowder Plot all over again. The result is exactly what it promises: an incredibly inaccurate, completely ridiculous and very entertaining musical comedy that knows from the first moment that it is not remotely interested in behaving like a conventional historical retelling.

Alex Pritchett's direction is mostly clear and adds huge energy to the production. I particularly liked the use of the aisles and the way the performers aren’t restricted to simply playing within the traditional stage space. That sense of movement makes the production feel much bigger than it is, while also drawing the audience more into the chaos. The direction understands that this is a musical comedy and keeps the pace moving without making it feel as though the performers are simply racing through the material.

The set is one of the few areas where I found myself wanting more. The portraits of famous monarchs with celebrity faces are very funny when you first walk into the space, but unfortunately they don’t really get mentioned or used throughout the show. That makes them feel slightly disconnected from the production itself. There is an opportunity to replace some of those portraits with the actual signs, objects, and graphic elements used within the story, and then use lighting to identify different locations. That would make the design feel better integrated into the storytelling, rather than simply providing a funny visual before the show begins. The one frame that is interacted with is great, which demonstrates exactly how much fun the set could have been if more of it had been incorporated into the action.

Costume is brilliant fun. The Georgian base costumes already look lovely in their own right and provide a firm foundation for the company’s multiple roles. Then come the accessories. And particularly the King’s accessories. They are wonderfully camp. The costumes contribute an extra layer of whimsy to the production and help the actors transform rapidly between characters without requiring endless costume changes. There is a lovely theatricality to watching a performer add one ridiculous item and suddenly become someone completely different.

The lighting is fun, dynamic, and exciting. It adds another visual layer to the production and, for me, is one of its strongest technical elements. I particularly loved the different colour palettes used to separate the various locations. Each change gives the production a new visual identity and helps the audience immediately understand where we are without over-explaining it. Sound is mostly good, although there were a couple of moments during songs where it became slightly difficult to hear the performers. That is especially frustrating because the lyrics are such an important part of the comedy. The writing is packed with witty lines, so losing even a few of them means potentially losing one of the jokes. However, when everything is balanced correctly, the sound works well and keeps the musical numbers moving with plenty of energy.

The book is extremely funny. From the beginning, it makes absolutely no attempt to pretend that this is a historically accurate retelling. In fact, it seems positively delighted by how inaccurate it is. And that is exactly why it works. The writers take the familiar elements of the Gunpowder Plot and throw them into an absurd, camp and wonderfully modern world. The result is a script that constantly surprises you with where it decides to take the story next. There are jokes everywhere. Not just the occasional punchline, but a constant stream of ridiculous ideas, character choices and historical rewrites. The script knows exactly how far to push the silliness without completely losing the thread of the story.

The music and lyrics follow the same wonderfully camp philosophy. The lyrics are witty, the songs are catchy, and they really understand how musical comedy can use a song to make a joke land even harder. Plenty of clever lyrical moments, and the songs feel like they belong to the same heightened world as the book. It is also very easy to leave the theatre with one of the tunes stuck in your head. Which, given how many times I have been subjected to documented facts over the years, is a more enjoyable way to remember 1605.

The performances by Lucy Buncombe, Ross Tomlinson, Tom O’Kelly and Kluane Saunders are all brilliant. This company clearly understands ensemble comedy. Everyone gets their time to shine, and the multi-rolling allows each performer to demonstrate a completely different characterisation from one scene to the next. The characters are outrageous in the best possible way, but the actors never seem to be competing for attention. Instead, they build the comedy together. There is a real generosity between the performers, and that is essential when so much of the humour depends on reacting to what someone else has just done.

Remember, Remember! is exactly the sort of musical comedy that the Fringe does brilliantly. It takes a historical event we all think we know and says, essentially, yes, but what if we made it completely ridiculous? The result is camp, colourful, energetic and consistently funny. There are a few areas where the production could be tightened, particularly making the set feel more connected to the story and improving the sound balance during a couple of musical numbers. Still, these don’t take away from what is otherwise a hugely enjoyable piece of musical theatre.

Remember, Remember! plays at the Pleasance Queen Dome until the 30th August at 5:15 pm with a run time of 60 minutes.

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