Life of Pi Review

Due to Covid and a succession of reschedules and cancellations, I’ve had two years for the hype for this show to grow. Add to that the fact that I loved the film, and expectations were at an all time high when I finally found myself in the theatre, an almost impossible standard for the play to live up to.

But live up to it, it did. Life of Pi is a beautiful tale that questions the nature of faith and belief, that blurs the line between truth and imagination. We are left asking ourselves which version of the story we choose to believe, and whether that choice means that they can’t both be true simultaneously. I could argue that one is factually accurate whilst the other emotionally true but we’re here for a review, not a philosophical discussion!

The production is absolutely astounding; rarely have I witnessed such a cinematic theatre experience. The stage was ingenious, effortlessly switching from zoo to hospital room to ship to market to lifeboat, more often than not without the actors having to move. The light work was superb and had the audience gasping on more than one occasion from the sheer beauty and wonder it conjured up. The transitions took us with Pi on his storytelling and we felt along with him how the boundaries between present and past, current moment and memories swam together into a sometimes unfathomable knot. My one complaint was that, in an effort to set the mood and create atmosphere, the background music often drowned out the actors. Hiran Abeysekera as Pi, in particular, had several scenes where his shouted lines were totally incomprehensible. A reminder to plays that the cast mics may need adjusting in certain moments if there are competing sounds going on.

The acting was competent across the board, with perhaps some weaker moments from Nicholas Khan as the father, but it was the puppeteering that stole the show. All the animals had their own way of moving, which both mimicked their natural counterparts and expressed individual personality. The standout was of course Richard Parker, whose feline grace and sense of murderous beauty was palpable from the moment he came on stage. I can only assume a lot of time was spent studying tigers and cats as the movement was spot-on.

All in all, while the acting could have been stronger, this was a magical theatre experience. Now I just have to read the book!


Conclusion: Absolutely! [what's this?]


Life of Pi opened at the Wyndham Theatre in 2021.

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