Printable CopyMUSICAL OF THRONES: A COMEDY OF ICE AND FIRE
The Parks Theatre
Until 26 Feb 2017

Review by Paige Mulholland

Just as surely as we know that Winter is Coming, we know that a Game of Thrones musical is bound to set tongues (and swords) wagging. Moonboy’s adaptation is parody at its finest – witty, catchy, and based on an obvious love of the source material. Although some jarring technical errors took away from the show’s Adelaide premiere, once these are sorted out it’s clear that Moonboy will have a hit on their hands.

“Musical of Thrones: A Comedy of Ice and Fire” follows the Starks, the Targaryans, the Baratheons and the Lannisters as they fight for control of the Iron Throne. The show is best enjoyed by those with at least a little knowledge of the Game of Thrones universe, but purists beware – unsurprisingly, the two-hour show does not include all the detail of the mammoth television series or the plethora of books. However, if fans can leave their encyclopedic knowledge of the canon at the door, writer and director Daniel Cullen’s version is a lighthearted, dynamic, and insightful take on the original.

It was unfortunate that, on the night of review, several technical issues prevented the audience from hearing a large chunk of what was probably very witty dialogue. It is unsurprising that The Parks Theatres’ sound setup struggled to deal with so many individually mic’d performers. What was surprising was that, instead of lowering the volume on the backing track so the performers could be heard acoustically, the music was bumped up, leaving many performers inaudible in both speech and singing.

While the lighting started strong, in the second act there were many notable errors, including a missed blackout cue where, after ‘dying’ and waiting an uncomfortable amount of time for a blackout that never came, the actors had to stand and shuffle offstage. After this point, in what seemed to be an attempt to provide a belated blackout, the house lights were switched on. Particularly in a show where all other elements are so strong, this was a considerable distraction.

The performers were consistently well-rehearsed and very funny. In the cast of 17, the standouts were Daniel Vershuer, who portrayed Ned Stark with excellent vocal tone, Samuel Pearson, who mastered Tyrion Lannister’s attitude in both his witty quips and his rap battle skills (a crowd favourite). Emma Druett and Madeleine Carr play Sansa and Arya stark with enthusiasm, Aarin Starkey is hilarious as Jamie Lannister, and Liam Ferguson is much more enjoyable to watch than the “real” Joffrey.

For those who are currently waiting with bated breath for the next Game of Thrones season, “Game of Thrones: A Comedy of Ice and Fire” may give them the hit they crave. The characters may not look quite the same as you remember, but this version also has some things the television show sorely lacks – sick beats and mad rap battles.

Rating: 4 stars (out of 5)