The Curious Case of Benjamin Button at the Ambassadors Theatre

Heartbreakingly beautiful tale of love and loss set against a backdrop of mystery and community. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button has been appearing all over my feed in recent months, so I decided to finally book a trip to The Pickled Crab. Going in blind left me partially apprehensive regarding the content warnings and subject material of the show, but for me it was portrayed so perfectly that I was crying out of connection with the characters in the show and empathy for them rather than just because of the content.

The Ambassadors Theatre is a small venue, and having seen Kathy & Stella: Solve a Murder there also, I booked row D of the stalls in the hope that it would be a more comfortable experience. Row D and back prevents looking up to see the stage, however I still struggled with leg room, although to a much lesser extent than when I sat in Circle Row A. If legroom is important for you, I would recommend booking an aisle seat for a bit more space. Also, this theatre struggles with sound mixing, leading to the bass being very prominent and this was something I could feel throughout the show. These sound issues also meant that there were moments of song I missed due to the music being louder than the vocals, thus overpowering the singing, especially in group moments, where I really struggled with a lack of clarity of what was being said.

This was a wonderful show that I am glad to have been able to see, and it is one that I would urge especially fans of Come From Away and Fisherman’s Friends to check out.

*POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD*

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My Review:

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is set in Cornwall and as such the show perfectly blends Cornish and English using Book & Lyrics (Jethro Compton) to showcase this, especially during the songs, as seen by the show opening with Rag Ty Yw Tre. The opening brings on all of the cast apart from the actor for Benjamin Button (Benedict Slater) as the rest of the cast multi-role throughout the show, often with a clear main role, which allows them to bring the full show to life. This is an actor-muso show with musical direction from Matthew Burns, and it was wonderful to see the incorporation of instruments throughout the show, as it is the cast that play their respective instruments throughout the show. The ability to balance playing an instrument whilst singing and performing is a testament to the talent of the entire cast, as it remained perfectly balanced and seamlessly incorporated throughout using choreography (Chi-San Howard and Meadhbh Lyons). During The Western Wind introduces the audience to various characters who will feature throughout, including Mary (Philippa Hogg) and Roger (Jonathon Charles) Button, as well as one of the characters of the rest of the company, which was made up of Katy Ellis, Anna Fordham, Damien James, Anna Marcusson, Emily Panes, and Jack Quarton. Finally, during The Pickled Crab and When E’re She Looked at Me, the audience is introduced to Elowen Keen (Clare Foster) whose sublime vocals were such a joy to listen to throughout the show. Also, frankly, her performance of the sheep was brilliant and such a wonderful comedic moment throughout the show. This show perfectly balances storytelling and performance to share with the audience a wonderful story of love and loss, and that whatever the sand in the hourglass moves, it’s always a matter of time. I feel this show beautifully encapsulates the question of how we should spend our time, and through Benjamin Button, the audience learns the importance of using your time wisely and how you wih to use it, which for Benjamin Button was spending time with his family, even when he couldn’t see past his situation. This show teaches that no matter what life throws at you, we all only have time, and I truly think the beautiful sentiment of the importance of time carried through this show is what makes it so powerful. The cast is incredibly talented and their voices wonderfully blend to create almost haunting moments, but are also strong independently to allow for impressive solo moments for their respective characters. Benedict Slater was brilliant at leading the story being told by the ensemble as narrators and is characterisation,  especially with regards to showing the various ages of Benjamin Button was simply flawless and this understanding and portrayal of the role definitely added to the power of the story being told and the impact that it had on the audience. He is perfectly countered by Clare Foster, who also uses characterisation to show the ageing of Elowen Keene, creating a greater contrast to Benjamin Button, thus consistently reminding the audience of the key point of the story that whether reversed or unchanged, time and tide wait for no one.

I strongly urge anyone to see this show before it closes on the 11th of October, as its heartfelt beauty provides a few hours of powerful storytelling which would be a shame to miss. I hope that this show will return in the future, either to the West End or as a tour, as it is such a powerful piece of new theatre that deserves to be seen by as many people as possible.

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Content Warnings:

The theatre does not have any content warnings on display however, these warnings are available on the show's website on the tickets page under ticket FAQs (https://benjaminbuttonmusical.com/ticket-information/), and these are as follows:

• Age Recommendation: 12+

• References to, and depictions of:

  • Childbirth

  • Miscarriage

  • Post-natal Depression

  • Suicide

  • Attempted Suicide

  • Death of an Infant/Child

  • Death resulting from Terminal Illness

  • Death resulting from Drowning

  • Death resulting from Gas Explosion

  • World War II

  • Fatal Road Traffic Collision involving Livestock

I did not make note of any other moments that I felt were not covered by these warnings; however, I will say this is certainly a heavy show, and how it portrays these warnings is very powerful and had me crying for most of the show. Also, the staging and wording of The Kraken’s Lullaby made that a difficult song for me personally to sit through, hence I felt it could be worth mentioning.

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Thank you for taking the time to read and I hope this review has proved interesting and helpful for you :)

- AnxiousTheatregoer