Stranger Things - The First Shadow (Phoenix Theatre, London) -- Guest Review by Doctor Terror
Stranger Danger
I had no idea how much I'd enjoy this marvellously staged prequel to the five-series Netflix behemoth, arguably the jewel in the station's crown until the live action One Piece adaptation came along. Perhaps I should not have been surprised: it is co-written by Jack Thorne, author of Adolescence, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the annual superlative adaptation of A Christmas Carol at the Old Vic and many of the best episodes of Shameless. Writing royalty if ever I saw it.
It is very Gothic, VERY scary and surprisingly funny. When odd kid Henry Creel, terrifyingly and heartbreakingly played by Jack Christou, arrived in Hawkins, Indiana, you know it's not going to end well. But WHAT a roller coaster ride!.
They have followed the trend of shows like 'Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club' and Moulin Rouge in theming the entire theatre. From the moment you enter, you are in late fifties small town America. There is an ice cream parlour and a picture house whose posters for a set of familiar-sounding but non-existent films, each of which echoes a specific plot point from the play, look like genuine promotional material for such Willian Castle-like fare as Science Monster.
There are same audible intakes of breath as key developments in the TV series are foreshadowed. I'm not a huge fan by any means (in fact, I have only watched the first two series, on DVD, rather than on the streaming platform). It didn't matter one bit. This is as good a night out as any horror/SF fan will ever enjoy. My mark out of ten? Eleven