Madagascar the Musical was reviewed at the Waterside Theatre, Aylesbury. The tour continues until 24 August 2024.
Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
There’s been fun for all the family this week with the latest show at Aylesbury’s Waterside Theatre. Based on the popular DreamWorks film of the same name (2005), Madagascar the Musical stars children’s favourite Karim Zeroual (CBBC, Strictly Come Dancing) as King Julien and a talented cast of skilled theatre actors in the parts of Alex (Joseph Hewlett), Marty (Francisco Gomes), Melman (Joshua Oakes-Rogers) and Gloria (Jarnéia Richard-Noel), plus the ensemble of course.
Centred on a group of animals that are the main attractions at New York’s Central Park Zoo, we meet Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Gloria the hippo and Melman the giraffe, who are all enjoying their life of luxury, until Marty’s 10th birthday causes him to doubt the four walls he calls home. Curiosity gets the better of him and he escapes the zoo followed by some agile penguins and his three friends. The gang soon find themselves on a boat, which due to the pesky penguins’ intervention, lands on the faraway shores of Madagascar. Here they meet the native animals of the island and get their first taste of freedom – for some like Alex though, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be!
This show is all about colour, energy and laughter, from the costumes and set to the infectious soundtrack and bouncing dance moves. It’s a feast for all the senses that kids of all ages will love. But, even with the show being aimed towards a younger audience, there’s plenty for adults to enjoy too. In particular, the talents of the cast are a joy to watch, with impeccable performance skills from every actor that takes to the stage. Acting, singing, dancing and even puppetry, the cast must be exhausted after the show ends – it’s full on from start to finish.
A great deal of care and attention has been taken on the set and costumes designed by Tom Rogers, as well as the phenomenal puppets designed by Max Humphries. It can be difficult to replicate such popular films on stage, but the creative team of Madagascar the Musical led by director Kirk Jameson executes it excellently and succeeds in giving the show a unique theatre twist.
Expect laughs throughout and dancing in the aisles to finish. My four-year-old nephew lapped up every minute and has been talking about it non-stop since we left the auditorium. With a run time of just under two hours, it’s the perfect after-school treat without risking keeping little ones up too far past their bedtime. Highly recommend catching this entertaining show while you can.
Hannah Grimmette
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