Love London Love Culture rounds up the reviews for John Kander and Fred Ebb’s musical murder mystery.
London Theatre1: ★★★★ “The in-jokes and puns about being in ‘showbiz’ work brilliantly and even the least stagey audience will find humour in the brilliant delivery of the witty one-liners.”
The Guardian: ★★★★ “Curtains is a dazzling curiosity for musical theatre completists and a smart and warm-hearted entertainment for all.”
The Arts Desk: ★★★★ “When it comes to closing out the West End year on an unanticipated high, Curtains has arrived not a moment too soon: cheers, not sneers, all round.”
Theatre Weekly: ★★★★ “Curtains is undeniably jolly good fun, combining the best elements of a ‘whodunnit’ with the glitz and glamour of showbiz, it’s just a shame that it can’t stay in the West End a little longer where it would undoubtedly receive the recognition it deserves.”
The Telegraph: ★★★ “Kander and Ebb gave us some of the biggest American musicals of the 20th century, sharp-edged, abrasive, game-changing: Cabaret, Chicago and Kiss of the Spider Woman. Among their lesser-known fare, they also rustled up Curtains, a backstage murder-mystery comedy, which itself took 20 years to hit Broadway from its first conception in 1986.”
Broadway World: ★★★ “While Curtains boasts a fair share of puckish, amusing musical numbers, it suffers from a few extended episodes where things get meandering and monotonous. Its three-hour runtime, in other words, is a bit bloated.”
Evening Standard: ★★★ “Perhaps you’ll find something heroic in this snarky murder mystery musical. Perhaps you want something other than panto or drama over the festive period. You could certainly do worse than this show. You could also certainly do better.”
The Reviews Hub: ★★★★ “Alistair David’s choreography and Alex Beetschen’s band never fall short, while the entire company shows the confidence and commitment to make the evening fun.”
British Theatre Guide: “Curtains could be a perfect Christmas ticket, since it is such great fun. Under the direction of Paul Foster, there is an intriguing plot, plenty of laughs and high-quality song and dance, which is the ideal recipe for a night out that should please young and old.”
The Times: ★★★ “It’s never less than interesting, this witty, well-acted and beautifully staged curio of a backstage whodunnit from the great songwriting duo of John Kander and Fred Ebb. Somehow, though, despite all of those virtues and a fair few more besides, it’s never much more than interesting.”
Curtains continues to play at the Wyndham’s Theatre until 11 January before continuing to tour the UK.
