No Wise Men

Synopsis

Reality and the ridiculous collide in an enchanting festive adventure, whisking you between Marrakech and Liverpool, Victorian England and the present day. From Peepolykus, the company that brought Spyski and the West End hit The Hound of the Baskervilles to Liverpool, and under the direction of Artistic Director Gemma Bodinetz (Tartuffe and The Hypochondriac), this is the extraordinary tale of a reckless man who risks everything one Christmas Eve. Jack Wilkins is forced into a desperate attempt to retrieve his life after accepting an irresistible offer from a sparkly eyed stranger. But time is running out and if he can't honour the deal he has struck and get to the hospital by the allotted hour, he will lose everything. Forever. With a toothy reindeer, a distracted fairy godmother, a warehouse full of pants and a seasonal nod to some of our best-loved Christmas stories No Wise Men is an hilarious, magical and absurd Christmas cracker of a show. WARNING: This show contains some scenes of a traditional nature.

Our Review:

8 December 2010

A mad mixture of fun and madness stalks the stage at the Liverpool Playhouse this festive season, in a veritable Christmas pudding of a show.

It all starts off so sanely, as an Ayckbourn-esqe Christmas play with brother, pregnant sister and their spouses and an ‘allo ‘allo French damsel meeting up for Christmas Eve. But soon the mayhem begins with funsters Peepolykus theatre company throwing everything that we know about Christmas into the mix.

Writers Steven Canny and John Nicholson were given free reign by director Gemma Bodinetz – and the zany concoction they came up with should not have worked – but it does!

And the wacky start should have warned us! Murray (Merry?) – a spirit-of-Christmas type figure from Scrooge – appears hovering above the stage, with a lighted match in his hand. This theme is extended as Hans Christian Anderson’s tale of The Little Match Girl is ever present and is woven right...

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Latest User Review

Philip Barclay - 28 December 2010:

A superb production that is genuinely different and memorable. The scenery is very cleverly thought out and and helps makes complex changes in both location and time occur smoothly. The six actors are all excellent and take the audience with them on their Christmas rollercoaster ride through the ages of the festive season. Definitely a production not to be missed - the Everyman at its best....

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