Beetlejuice the Musical, the Musical, the Musical

Beetlejuice the Musical | Prince Edward Theatre until 17th April 2027

Ghost With The Most: Say His Name Three Times, Beetlejuice Is Finally Haunting the West End

Beetlejuice the Musical, the Musical, the Musical. That tagline is right there on the poster, and it pretty much tells you everything you need to know about the tone of what’s waiting for you at the Prince Edward Theatre. Welcome to a show about death. You die. Now try to enjoy yourselves.

Tim Burton’s original film is one of those rarities: a character who barely appears on screen but makes an absolutely indelible impression. Beetlejuice doesn’t show up until about 20 minutes in, yet he hijacks the whole thing. In the musical, they’ve made the inspired choice to let him run the show from the off. He’s our master of ceremonies, appearing just after the opening number (which is, brilliantly, a ballad) and he’s immediately telling us that what we’re about to see is “such a great departure from the original source material.” He’s not wrong.

This is very much its own thing. Yes, the bones are all there (the Maitlands, the Deetzes, the supernatural chaos) and everything you loved from the film has been expanded: the hand that springs up from the plate of food, the sand monster, that little creature with the impossibly thin neck and small eyes. It’s all there, and it’s been realised beautifully with puppetry, illusion, and some very cleverly done levitation that had the first-night audience genuinely baffled as to how it was achieved.

The design is extraordinary: off-kilter, wonderfully warped, thoroughly Tim Burton. It’s jaw-dropping in places. Although I must point out that this is the touring set, so it’s not quite as spectacular as when I saw it on Broadway. It’s just a little disappointing that we don’t get to see it in its original glory, as the Broadway death of the Maitlands’ was genuinely shocking. Here, just literally so.

What the musical does that the film only hints at is give Lydia Deetz a real emotional core. Her opening number is called Dead Mom (and yes, it’s a little on the nose) but it works. This is her journey, her grief, and the show is all the richer for it. It’s a clever piece of adaptation: they haven’t just put the film on stage; they’ve improved upon it.

And then there’s David Fynn. He is absolutely great in this. Tremendous energy, tremendous comic timing, and the wisdom to make the role his own rather than trying to copy Michael Keaton’s iconic performance. He’s been given licence to adapt the show for a West End audience, and he’s made full use of it. He talks directly to us, fires off in-jokes at a terrific rate (I caught a delicious little Sondheim Company reference) and at one point makes a rather rude comment about Paddington the Musical that got an enormous laugh on the first night. It’s very much about right now, which means it’ll probably be different every time you see it.

Also, honourable mention must go to David Hunter as Adam Maitland and Chelsea Halfpenny as Barbara Maitland, who bring these characters very much to life and offer a comic foil to Beetlejuice. Hannah Nordberg also brings powerhouse vocals and emotional depth to the role of Lydia Deetz.

Would I have liked a little more menace underneath all the fun? If I’m being carping, then yes, the ghost with the most is also supposed to be a little unsettling. But I’m being picky. It’s a wonderful performance in a wonderful show.

This is running until April 2027 (Miss Saigon takes over the Prince Edward after that) so there’s plenty of time to plan your visit. If you love the film, if you like high-energy American musical theatre (and the score is by Australian Eddie Perfect, which might surprise you) then this is very much your kind of show.

It’s gleefully anarchic, beautifully designed, and enormous fun. Just don’t say his name three times unless you mean it.

EyeOnLondon will be covering more of this year’s biggest West End transfers as they open. Beetlejuice is dead good fun and well worth seeing before it’s gone.

[Image Credit | Johan Persson]

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