OPERATION MINCEMEAT - Golden Theatre (19/03/25)

It takes a seriously talented writing team, and similarly gifted group of performers, to be able to successfully create and sell a new musical comedy, but also be able to do it on both sides of the Atlantic, especially given how subjective humour often can be, is nothing short of remarkable. It has most successfully been executed by means of a distinct contrast between American and British comedic stylings, for example Monty Python vs. Mel Brooks, each having a careful balance between the subtle and the slapstick. That is what the team behind Operation Mincemeat have managed to achieve against the odds, with audiences in London, and now on broadway, revelling in this brilliant, hilarious, silly little show.

Operation Mincemeat is based on the real life M.I.5 operation of the same name, during which a corpse is dressed up like a soldier, floated out to Spain with a briefcase containing a complex array of fake documentation attached to his wrist, in an attempt to misdirect Hitler’s troops for safe passage through Sicily, a plan that actually worked, and proved instrumental in winning the Second World War. Given the bizarre, twisted, rather grotesque nature of the operation, one would be forgiven for being highly sceptical about how it could possibly make a good musical; one's skepticism is quashed rather quickly, as we soon come to realise SpitLip have created something truly phenomenal.

The company of Operation Mincemeat (credit: Julieta Cervantes)

Through the combined efforts of David Cummings, Natasha Hodgson and Zoë Roberts, all also part of the cast, plus musician and composer Felix Hagan, we have ended up with a potentially era defining piece of musical theatre that not only pushes the boundaries of what can be done with multiroling, with five performers portraying around 90 different characters between them, but proves that no matter how humble your beginnings, there’s no limit to where you can go with big ambitions.

A whole host of productions in recent years have made use of multiroling, either as a cost-cutting measure, or a means of showcasing the talent and versatility of the performers on stage. And whilst the latter is certainly true, the style of theatre and the small scale of it not only calls for its use, but is entirely enhanced by how quickly the five of the performers can switch between roles, yet make them all distinct from each other, which is no mean feat. Costume designer Ben Stones is also worthy of considerable kudos, mainly for being able to facilitate such quick costume changes to aid the often breakneck pace of the show.

And all five performers excel in every role they portrayed, with Cummings' impressive range on full display, and Claire-Marie Hall showing solemnity yet gumption as Jean Leslie, as well as some terrific high vocals that ring above the ensemble. We do have to give a special mention to Olivier winner Jak Malone, who absolutely steals the show, both for the sheer number of characters he was able to masterfully express, and how he managed to make each one distinct from the next. However it was his portrayal of office secretary Hester Leggatt that had everyone in that auditorium transfixed, most notably in his performance of “Dear Bill”, during which you could hear a pin drop safe for the occasional sniff of weepiness. Malone is a superstar, and it’s wonderful to see him wowing broadway audiences, as he did similarly in the west end.

Jak Malone in Operation Mincemeat (credit: Julieta Cervantes)

It has been an unreserved pleasure seeing how this show has developed from its arguably low-budget beginnings, and its glow-up for its west end debut at the Fortune was impressive in and of itself, but what I didn't expect was that they managed to up the ante even further, with several subtle scenic additions, and an even glitzier "glitzy finale" than we've ever seen before. This is the largest stage on which we have ever seen Mincemeat performed, set designer Ben Stones has made great use of this space, with subtle improvements that have made a huge difference; there was every danger that pushing too hard with the spectacle of it all would make the show excessively ostentatious, but the perfect balance has been hit.

Mark Henderson's lighting design also given wonderful opportunity to shine, especially in the act two opening, featuring a boy band of third reich soldiers unashamedly expressing their love of all things far-right, complete with choreography. Subsequent to this, Roberts elicits perhaps the most unrestrained laugh of the night, with the questionable nature of the adulation afforded to the fascist-themed musical number we had just experienced (and enjoyed enormously) summed up in a single, self-aware word: "really?".

Most theatre creators can only dream of having the progression of success that Mincemeat has experienced, and seeing how it has built from a regional workshop, to the 80-seater New Diorama Theatre, three further off-west end runs, into the Fortune Theatre, and finally to broadway, has been simply extraordinary, and represents the very best of what theatre is all about. This tiny, daft yellow show that could has been given the broadway treatment, it is clear that US audiences have quickly taken this show into their hearts, and god it's brilliant!

★★★★★

"Operation Mincemeat" currently plays at the Golden Theatre in New York, as well as at the Fortune Theatre in London's west end.

{PR/Gifted ticket}