Review: REBECCA at The Charing Cross Theatre, London

 

Tickets: Gifted

Date: 18th September 2023

Seat: G3

Rating: 3 Stars

From the first chilling note to the final fiery scene, Rebecca is an all-out melodrama, complete with sinister plots, a soaring score, and characters that wouldn’t look out of place in a panto – but that’s all part of its charm. It’s an over-the-top, entirely gorgeous piece of outlandish theatre, and I absolutely loved it. Although, that’s not to say there aren’t a few issues. 

One of the biggest problems with Rebecca is that something seems to have been a little lost in translation. The story still makes sense (although perhaps knowing the Daphne du Maurier novel or the 1940 Hitchcock adaptation with Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine does help with that), but some of the lyrics just seem too on the nose, or just not clever enough to be memorable. Perhaps the original German gives a different feeling, but in English, there are a few moments that get lost and aren’t as strong as they might be. 

Plus, this musical is a grand one. It’s big. Bold. Dramatic. It needs a huge stage and a massive set – I so desperately wanted to see a burning staircase in the finale – but it’s been stripped down and, again, loses something because of that. Perhaps it’s because it’s playing in the tiny (but lovely) Charing Cross Theatre, and changes had to be made to the set and the choreography, but overall, it needs a bit of a push to get to where it needs to be. 

Having said that, I did still sit, mouth open, as Rebecca stormed across the stage. Those vocals… I am in awe. Kara Lane is a performer I’ve seen before (in The Addams Family, playing Alice), and I’m so glad to have been able to see her again – what a powerhouse she is, making Mrs Danvers sinister and frightening and sad. And Richard Carson is extraordinary as Maxim De Winter; at once feeble and weak, but with a terrible temper and some deep issues that I’m not sure ever really get resolved. Lauren Jones is I, or the Second Mrs De Winter. She is a star, and there’s no debate to be had about that. When she and Kara Lane sang their duets, I got chills; those songs aren’t something I’ll forget in a hurry. 

The music (by Michael Kunze and Sylvester Levay) is beautiful, and having an 18-piece orchestra in that tiny space really made a difference; the melodies were full and all-encompassing, and when the extraordinary voices were added, everything fell into place. 

The set, although not as grand as it could (or should) be, is still clever, with walls moving around like pages of a book opening, telling the story as they go. And although I did want to see things burn, the demise of Manderley, done using lighting, projections, smoke, and a very creepy Kara Lane stoically making her way up the stairs – an image that has stuck with me – is an immersive one, and it worked. That house was burning right in front of me. I’m sure of it. 

I think I adored Rebecca for its big ideas. I think I loved it for its darkness and its beauty and its unforgettable strangeness. I think… I’m a fan. 

Rebecca runs at the Charing Cross Theatre, London until 18th November 2023: https://charingcrosstheatre.co.uk/theatre/rebecca