It’s bonfire night! As the nation celebrates by lighting fireworks and sparklers, whispers of the day’s origins begin to circle once more, as the name ‘Guy Fawkes’ is passed around the bonfire. With November 5th upon us once more, I took a trip back in time to see how we got here, with Treason waiting to tell its story.
Treason recounts the tale of the Gunpower Plot, the ill-fated plot to assassinate King James I in 1605 by detonating explosives beneath the House of Lords. Narrated by Fawkes, we see how religious tensions between Protestants and Catholics evolved in Britain, leading to full persecution and setting the plot in motion. With the plotters led by Thomas Percy and Robert Catesby, we see how the plan developed, was discovered and how Guy Fawkes came to be the figure commended for a plot that was not of his making.
Treason was an intriguing watch. Having Fawkes narrating the story is an interesting creative choice which I loved, especially as it challenges the notion that Guy Fawkes himself was responsible for the plot and having him ‘detached’ as a narrating character really drove that point home. The use of set and props was very reminiscent of Hamilton, with a few audience members remarking that the show reminded them of the Lin-Manuel Miranda hit. In this same style, the interpretative dance and movements of the relatively small ensemble was exciting, making transitions between scenes and characters flawless. This show did have some issues with audio however, with characters’ voices sometimes being lost, particularly during songs, which meant I wasn’t always able to hear what the cast were actually saying. This didn’t hugely impact my understanding of the story, but did take me out of the narrative occasionally.
This cast are immensely talented throughout the production. Sam Ferriday as Thomas Percy gave a powerful performance as this deeply troubled and eventually vengeful character who comes to be on a personal vendetta in the plot. Ferriday is able to portray such gut-wrenching emotions with ease, letting you connect with this character in a remarkably personal way, especially considering he’s playing a figure I never knew existed. Also was Oscar Conlon-Morrey who gave a phenomenal rendition of Robert Cecil, adviser to King James I. Oscar brought simultaneously a menacing but fantastically camp element to this show. His performance was comedic yet chilling, and complemented King James’ character well. Finally, a mention needs to be given to Gabriel Akamo who played Fawkes, narrating this story. His mysterious performance with poetry interludes from the shadows is dark and brooding, and his closing monologue is deeply profound.
Treason is an engaging and captivating production which brings to light a section of history which is rarely fully explored. Whilst some sections of the musical were difficult to follow due to audio and speech issues, the show was enjoyable and challenged everything I thought I knew about 1605.
Rating: ★★★★☆
Treason is touring the U.K. until November 22nd
