Playing at the Alex Theatre, St Kilda until June 21
Tickets and more information via thrones.com.au
Raucous, ribald and frequently risqué, Thrones! The Musical Parody is, much like Game of Thrones itself, a compelling piece of entertainment that doesn’t hold back in any regard.
The difference being is that Thrones! plays GoT plotlines and characters for laughs rather than the super-serious tone of the TV series, but if you’re short on time and want the entire Westeros saga to be condensed into one 70-minute performance, then this is an ideal show for fans and novices alike.
A clever setup is what sets this apart from most other parody shows. Usually the standard format is to just do a sort of greatest hits pastiche from the show on the stage, but Thrones! shakes that formula up by having the plot revolve around the newly-divorced Linda (Kelsey Halge) being surprised by her brother (Callum O’Malley) and her friends (Crystal Hegedis, Belinda Jenkin, Joseph Lizacic and Conor Putland) who visit Linda’s apartment and decide to help cheer her up by watching the soon-to-be-airing final episode of GoT with her.
The only problem is, Linda has – shock horror – never watched the show, but this revelation prompts her theatrical buddies to put together an improvised and abridged recap of the entire run of the show to catch Linda up, with her pals themselves donning costumes and wigs to portray all of the major players on the show, such as Tyrion, Cersei, Jaime, Daenerys, Sansa, Arya and of course, Jon Snow.
With that nifty premise in place, we’re treated to some ridiculously fun musical numbers. The highlight is the banging hip-hop number Stabbin’, parodying the insane level of violence the show features. There’s another number sung by Tyrion that parodies Hamilton to great effect as well.
While Thrones! certainly pushes the boundaries for what might be considered good taste, fans of the show should know what they’re in for, with jokes about incest and infanticide not unexpected. But despite featuring some darker elements, the show has an upbeat and good-natured tone throughout and the cast have a lot of fun playing up the shock factor of some of the dicier jokes.
The entire cast is wonderful, but the standout performer for me was Jenkin, who plays Daenerys and the loathsome King Joffrey. Jenkin’s expert timing, superb vocals and interactions with the crowd provided some of the show’s highlights.
The costuming and sets are terrific, and some of the quick costume changes the cast must do to go from playing one character to another is really impressive. The way in which the cast bring Daenerys’ dragon to life is also ingenious and the cast always do a great job of delineating between the multiple characters they’re playing.
While this is an affectionate parody, Thrones! is also not afraid to be critical of the show or its creator George R.R. Martin, at one point mentioning that the show was “7 ⅓ seasons of the best television ever made”.
Incorporating jabs at other big sci-fi/fantasy franchises such as Star Wars, Harry Potter and The Hunger Games, and even finding the time to take multiple digs at Donald Trump, Thrones! throws everything at the wall in its quest to make the audience laugh, and almost always hits the target.
As someone who was a casual fan of the series but never quite made it to the Season Eight finish line, I can’t say I caught every single gag or reference the show offers, but I think Thrones! is written well enough that it will engage viewers who only have a passing knowledge of the show or the books.
With a wonderful cast, catchy songs and consistent laugh out loud jokes, Thrones! is one of the flat-out funniest and accomplished parody musicals I’ve ever seen.
4/5 STARS
TINSEL and TAP SHOES 