Jeevan Braich and Jaydon Vijn in Starlight Express at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, London. Picture: Pamela Raith
Starlight Express continues at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, London, currently booking to June 2025.
Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩
In the early 1980s, people really must’ve thought that Andrew Lloyd Webber was a few keys short of a piano. After somehow turning a book of TS Eliot’s poems into the groundbreaking Cats, he followed it up with the equally bonkers suggestion of a musical about trains, where the actors would perform on roller skates and race around the auditorium.
It was actually an idea he’d been working on for around a decade, inspired by watching his young son playing with a trainset, and along with lyricist Richard Stilgoe, created one of the “mega-musicals” of the decade. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the original production, which ran from 1984 to 2002 for nearly 7,500 performances at London’s Apollo Victoria (now the home of Wicked), and it’s time to get your skates on again. The show has been revived at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, where the unique space has been transformed to allow the beloved trains to race once more.
The story takes place mostly in the dreams of a young child, who takes on the role of Control in the fantasy, introducing us to the various trains, engines, trucks and coaches, and creating a competitive race between them (along with various clashes and romances). Competing for victory and/or love are the young steam engine Rusty (played by Jeevan Braich), thunderous diesel engine Greaseball (Al Knott) and the electricity-driven Electra (Tom Pilgrim), along with various others alongside accompanying coaches Dinah (Eve Humphrey), Tassita (Renz Cardenas) and Pearl (understudied on this occasion by Ashlyn Weekes). We follow Rusty as he races against the bigger and stronger engines through various heats, while falling in love with Pearl as he hopes to prove he’s good enough for her.
Starlight Express was a mega-hit for Webber back in the day, and while he’d probably be the first person to say it’s perhaps not his strongest work, there’s something about the spectacle of the piece that makes it undeniably entertaining. It’s certainly a product of its time, with its synth-rock score dripping with 1980s cheese, but equally it’s completely unique and unlike any other show. The plot can either be seen as an exploration of the ethical pros and cons of different power sources, a study of gender roles and equality, or just an excuse to have a bunch of people racing on roller skates and singing funky songs, and in truth it doesn’t really matter. When it’s full steam ahead, Starlight Express pulls you into the race and brings you along for the ride, and it’s thrilling.
The show has been reworked numerous times over the years, with songs being moved around and characters being changed, and that evolution continues in this new production. Along with creative dramaturg Arlene Phillips (who choreographed the original production), director Luke Sheppard has blurred the lines of some of the established characters and storylines, seemingly in an attempt to update the show to reflect the world we live in (the most notable change is the formerly-male character of Greaseball now presenting as female).
Such changes do muddy the waters around the gender statements that the show was originally making and reduce the impact of some others. But theatre should evolve, and it’s great to see a different take, especially as it means we get more of a female presence in the show which is fantastic (along with Greaseball, the character of Poppa is now Momma). Following recent successes with The Little Big Things and & Juliet, this is Sheppard’s first real take on a classic, and while his changes may upset some purists, they’re mostly done effectively and with a great vision.
A lot of time and thought (and money) have gone into the look of the show, and it was well-worth it. From the space-age-meets-disco foyer to the sci-fi-neon of the auditorium itself, everything about the production looks incredible. Tim Hatley’s set design is brilliant and a work of art in itself, with race tracks that circle the stage and reach out into the audience (although it must be said that the races themselves do feel a little slower than they should, perhaps down to health and safety guidelines being tighter these days than they were in the ’80s).
Howard Hudson’s lighting design is stunning, creating moments of magic, and Andrzej Goulding’s video design and animation are cleverly done. The characters also look great, with costume design by Gabriella Slade, who gave the queens of Six their memorable looks (the influence of which can be felt here too).
The cast is largely made up of recent graduates, who make up for their lack of stage experience with conviction and drive, and seemingly endless energy (skate-ography is certainly no easy task!). It’s a true ensemble piece with everyone working hard, although there are definite standouts and some stars-in-the-making. Knott makes a punchy impression as the arrogant Greaseball, Jaydon Vijn exudes cool as the mesmerising Hydra, Humphrey shines as the perky Dinah and Jade Marvin gives plenty of soulful blues as Momma. Braich makes a likeable if slightly insipid lead as Rusty, displaying a nice voice but lacking a certain star power to really soar. But it’s a debut, he does a good job, and will only get stronger as the run progresses.
Starlight Express isn’t Webber’s best work, and Stilgoe’s lyrics often sound triter than they should, but the show works because it’s more than a musical, it’s an event. It’s about the limitless imagination of children and the star-filled wonder of nostalgia. It’s a show that today’s parents probably grew up with, that they can now take their own children to and introduce them to the magic of live theatre with something different to another Disney adaptation. A reminder of just what a maverick and visionary Webber was back in the day, this is worth skating down to Wembley for.
Rob Bartley
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