Review of 'Starlight Express'

https://www.starlightexpresslondon.com/

I originally saw Andrew Lloyd Webbers ground-breaking “Starlight Express” when it played at the Apollo Victoria in the centre of London. In this new revival of the musical it shifts to a, necessarily, heavily modified theatre out in Wembley Park.

The storyline of “Starlight Express” is of young boy (“control” played by young actors Aanya Devi Sharma, Buzz Fletcher, Shayan Ghai, Karin Narumi and Elliot Norrington) dreaming of a group of trains played by actors on roller skates competing in a series of three races throughout the show to see which is the fastest. The hero of the story is “Rusty” (Jeevan Braich), an aging “steam train” that has been relegated to the sidelines in favour of newer, more powerful trains such as diesel train “Greaseball” (Al Knott), and ultra modern electric train “Electra” (Tom Pigram). Rusty is out to impress the first-class observation car, Pearl, by becoming champion of the races. Rusty is supported by his mother (Jade Marvin), a former world champion, who originally enters the races but has to drop out due to exhaustion with Rusty taking her place.

This musical is completely bonkers and really challenged what is actually possible to do in a theatre but at Wembley Park it looks and sounds great. Webber's music (performed live), of course, is amazing though with the relatively simple story, it lacks a huge amount of emotional depth with the common theme of finding an internal inspiration to achieve more. This is of little importance as attendees are here to witness the spectacle and quite a spectacle it is with an incredibly dynamic set of tracks leading in and around the auditorium with speeding roller skating cast often only a few feet from audience members. The choreography is magnificent with incredible skating by the cast and perfectly achieved cues that must be very difficult. There are two “marshalls” on scooters that perform some incredible acrobatics that must be seen to be believed but the cast itself are so casually confident things like skating backwards the length of the auditorium and out an exit is accomplished with ease. It is amazing to see them at full pelt around the track while singing perfectly with no gasping sounds coming over their mics whatsoever. On a technical note all of this activity does mean there are restrictions placed on the audience that prevents them from leaving their seats at certain points in the performance (being told that if they do they are likely not to be let back in). The costumes are a flight of fancy with lots of bling, huge shoulders and wild colours along with practical elements such as handles sewn on their backs so they performers can form “trains” skating in tandem around the track.

The performance is about 2 hours and 20 minutes long with a (short) 15 minute interval with performance photography allowed only during the encore. The lobby of the theatre is all done up with disco lights along with a requisite souvenir stand, bar and eating area. It is quite small so gets quite crowded with extremely limited bar-style seating available.

We had seats on the left side of the stage looking down on the track so could literally reach out and touch the performers as they went by (though, of course, this is a “no no”). I think if you are going to see it, it is good to get close to the track to really appreciate the spectacle. Ticket prices are fairly steep so it is worth studying the seating plan and strategically figuring out what seats you would like to have noting that some of the more interesting seats are actually the cheapest but, of course, have access limitations due to their location.

So rarely staged due to production costs, it is worth getting tickets and seeing this while it is playing. It looks and sounds absolutely amazing - an experience you will not soon forget!

Rating: “I have absolutely no complaints”

Review Date: 2025-04-17

Location: London (England)

Address: 3 Fulton Rd, Wembley Park, Wembley, London HA9 0SP ENGLAND

Public Transport: Wembley Park

URL: https://www.troubadourtheatres.com/wembley-park-theatre

A new theatre in Wembley Park that is currently hosting “Starlight Express” and is only a stone's throw from the tube station. Entrance is via Fulton Road with an outside courtyard, lobby and a theatre space to the left.