Louis Maskell in The Grinning Man. Picture: Simon Annand
The Grinning Man is a delightfully dark musical based on Victor Hugo’s novel The Man Who Laughs. A year after its successful run at the Bristol Old Vic, the show has been reworked and is now ready to enchant audiences in London.
I was fortunate enough to be invited to take a glimpse into the ‘rehearsal room’ of this exciting piece of theatre.
A large, deformed smile grinned at us from the backdrop and, stood in front, the director Tom Morris introduced the premise of the show.
A dark fairy tale begins, where a young boy with a gruesome facial injury is rescued from the woods along with a blind girl. His injury finds him fame in a circus, but it is only the blind girl who can see his real beauty.
Morris invited the cast to the stage to perform a selection of numbers from the show. It is testament to the musical writing of Tim Phillips and Marc Teitler that the musical integrity is carried through whilst accompanied solely by a piano.
Without costumes or special effects, the ensemble of The Grinning Man instantly immersed us in the macabre world of the story.
Julian Bleach, who plays the heartless clown, Barkilphedro, led the opening number which introduced the cast of uncanny characters.
The protagonist, Grinpayne, was played wonderfully by Louis Maskell who originated the role at Bristol Old Vic. Both Maskell’s voice and physicality expressed the anguish and innocence of Grinpayne’s tragic story. The cast was joined by incredibly detailed puppets which both complemented the strangely endearing aesthetic of the musical and added to its haunting atmosphere.
This small sneak preview of the show was utterly charming, and I look forward to seeing the full production at the Trafalgar Studios very soon.
Lani Calvert
* The London transfer of The Grinning Man will open at the Trafalgar Studios on 6 December
Tickets for The Grinning Man are available HERE.
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