Jurassic Park parody Hold On To Your Butts at Arcola Theatre and on tour – review

Hold On To Your Butts, a “shot-by-shot remake of Jurassic Park” made by Recent Cutbacks theatre company, was a hit at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival and is now playing the Arcola into the new year – and it’s not hard to see why it was so popular.

With two performers, one foley artist and a handful of props, this production makes an irreverent and loving tribute to the epic film, which makes for a delightful hour-and-a-bit. On the surface, the pitch of the show really is that simple – a scene-by-scene version of the 1993 film, starting with a worker getting attacked by a raptor, going through helicopters, jeeps, and computer animations with almost beat-for-beat and line-for-line loyalty. It’s not an exact replica – it actually moves along, usefully, at much more of a pace – but I think you’d need to be a real die-hard fan to worry about what’s missing.

Despite this surface simplicity, and perhaps hinted at by the reduced runtime, there’s an absolute thoroughness and rigour to the structure, rhythm and pace of Hold On To Your Butts, with every joke and scene landing in exactly the right place. Every moment is recreated with both proper care and a light touch, with each potential problem throwing up instead exciting opportunities. Some of my favourite solves were the recreation of the helicopter ride into Jurassic Park with a spinning umbrella – quickly jumping to a cocktail umbrella for a wide shot, accompanied by a kazoo rendition of the famous music – and the same umbrella being suddenly opened as the spitting dilophosaurus. There’s a lovely balance between scenes made funny because they’re being recreated with such accuracy, and those made hilarious with a sly comment. Kristin McCarthy Parker’s direction is truly commendable, balancing pace and earnestness throughout the show, and setting up the rules of the world in a way that’s a delight to follow.

Jack Baldwin and Laurence Pears are excellent, throwing jokes back and forth between each other with great comic timing. They’re able to pull out a whole series of fully fleshed characters in an instant and with just a handful of props. Baldwin’s Jeff Goldblum impression is particularly brilliant, and Pears makes (amongst other things!) a brilliant T-Rex. They move with real precision, even when things go wrong, and help to ensure a slickness and lightness to the whole show. Charlie Ives’ foley work is a marvel – offering a rich and detailed sound texture to the world that really allows the show to feel as epic as the film it’s based on. It’s also a great source of humour and play in itself, and she’s folded into the show really smartly.

The design, a backcloth and that series of simple props and costume pieces used incredibly well, does its job perfectly, keeping us exactly between the world of the show and the world of the theatre. Christopher Nairne’s lighting design is a particular standout, snapping and flowing us between locations with real ease, and creating an atmosphere of horror or laughter in equal measure when needed.

A lot of the humour does rely on at least some knowledge of the film, and you’ll certainly have a better time if you’ve seen it more than once and are able to pick up on the subtleties – and the easter eggs! – in Recent Cutbacks’ work.