Ride the Cyclone. Book, music & lyrics by Jacob Richmond & Brooke Maxwell. Southwark Playhouse, the Elephant, London until 10 January 2026, 4☆☆☆☆. Review: William Russell.

Photo Credit: Danny Kaan.

Ride the Cyclone. Book, music & lyrics by Jacob Richmond & Brooke Maxwell. Southwark Playhouse, the Elephant, 1 Dante Place, London SE11 until 10 January 2026,

4☆☆☆☆. Review: William Russell.  

“A whirlwind of a show.”

Set in Uranium City, Saskatchewan, this nine-year-old Canadian musical has made a triumphant transcontinental and Atlantic crossing – the Elephant has been home to some less than marvellous musicals, but this one is funny, splendidly performed and directed, and while you may not hum the score in the bathtub it is easy on the ear. Six teenagers from a school choir have taken a fairground ride on the Cyclone only for it to crash and now they are in limbo confronted  by a heavenly  gate keeper, The Amazing Karnak, played  by Edward Wu, who offers one of them a chance of life – whereupon they all do their own turns to reveal it should be them. The Amazing Karnak does not have long himself as it seems a rat is busily chewing through his support cables and he – and the rat, once the job is done – will also die. Enter the rat on the revolving stage. The six are a splendid assortment of types, the goodlooking boy turns out to be gay and dreams of being Marlene Dietrich – how he gets rid of the dull school uniform is a joy to behold, although Marlene might not have approved of the result – the small person who apparently does not sing proves talented in an amazing number of ways, and the girl who thinks she is the darling of the day is revealed as the selfish brat she really is. One of the six is actually not a member of the school but is Jane Doe, the headless woman we first meet. And of course, one of them got impregnated for the first time on the way to the fairground. But not going to run through the individual stories, best that you find out for yourselves. It really is a show worth enduring the dreadful seating in the Elephant, inexcusable in a custom designed theatre. Director and choreographer Lizzie Gee keeps it going at whirlwind speed, the routines are fast and furious and the band under Ben McQuigg belts out the score loudly but not – as so often happens – ear splittingly. Apart from anything else it opens up a whole new vision of Canadian life. So go along for the ride. The show does not go off the rails, and the experience is – as it should be – exhilarating.

Cast

Baylie Carson – Ocean O'Connell Rosenberg

Grace Galloway – Jane Doe

Roslyn Gilbertson – Constance Blackwood

Damon Gould – Noel Gruber

Bartek Kraszewski – Mischa Bachinski

Jack Maverick – Ricky {ptts.

Edward Wu – The Amazing Karnak.

Creatives

Director& Choreographer – Lizzi Gee.

Set & Costume Designer – Ryan Dawson-Laight.

Musical Director – Ben McQuigg.

Lighting Designer – Tim Deiling.

Video Designer – Nina Dunn.

Sound Designer – Tom Marshall.

Illusion Designer – Richard Pinner.