1 February – 11 March

It was difficult to know what to expect from IDIOTS ASSEMBLE: SPITTING IMAGE SAVES THE WORLD. Like many in the audience, I witnessed the first incarnations of Spitting Image in the 1980s, and I can still recall the lyrics, ‘Hold a chicken in the air and stick a deck chair up your nose’, from their 1986 UK number one hit. The show’s great early popularity faded in the early 1990s. It had a shelf life, and its time was up. A TV revival had some good moments, but never quite brought on the sort of gleeful laughter of the early years. But theatre is not TV and on many occasions this week I found myself wondering how the production team and cast were going to pull off such puppetry on stage in a live, rather than a recorded, performance. I need not have worried. The theatre experience allowed audience participation and atmosphere to add to the experience, making this far better than the TV show.

Of course, there is a compromise. Television production does not reveal the puppeteers, only the puppets, something unable to be replicated on stage. However, the puppetry was done so well that the cast were largely inconspicuous if not entirely hidden. The puppeteers’ skill was inspiring, and they brought a tremendous energy to the production, an ingredient often missing on the small screen. The characters were full of life, spontaneity, movement, and far more animated than their TV counterparts

The puppets themselves, as expected, were brilliantly conceived 3D caricatures, all instantly recognisable exaggerations of their characters. You can be assured none of the real-life personalities would be flattered, which is rather the point of this style of satire. Indeed, every single one of them would be outraged, which just makes it funnier. The characters were also well chosen, a host of national and international politicians, royals, singers, actors, and ‘celebrities’ known to several generations. Favourites of mine were Tyson Fury, Greta Thunberg, Prince Andrew and Elon Musk, though Boris, Meghan and Harry were also popular with the audience. Perhaps, surprisingly Carrie Johnson’s nipples made a couple of superb cameo appearances in an arousing (no, that’s not a typo) first-half finale (you’ll have to see it to understand – age guidance 16+).

Matching the quality physical imitations were quite brilliant vocal impersonations, perfectly coordinated and synced with the puppetry. The whole cast and crew were excellent, and the director Sean Foley deserves credit for bringing it all together seamlessly.

No one came to the show for the plot, which was ludicrous but entirely immaterial to the performance. Its only purpose was as a vehicle for the satire, and in that respect it worked very well. This was again due to the energy of the cast and the freedom they had to keep the pace of the show flowing with gag after gag after gag. Some of the gags were not that funny, but because of the wonderful pace and the clinical comic timing they got carried among the majority of the quick-fire gems. Some of the gags were not even gags at all, but witty and insightful observations which, after all, is the essence of good satire. Another key aspect of this genre of humour is its ability to offend everyone equally. The constant presence of Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping in the wings was a reminder that in some parts of the world people are killed for poking fun at their leaders, making our freedom to indulge in such satire, audience and performers alike, an even greater joy.

★★★★☆  Robert Gainer  17 February 2023

Photo credits: Mark Senior, Mark Harrison