Tickets were gifted in return for an honest review
Expect disaster and chaos as the Cornley Drama Society are in town with their latest production, a staging of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Unbelievably, for a company that has been around for a number of years now, things are still going catastrophically wrong.
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| Photo by Matt Crockett. |
Mischief brings their impeccable comedy stylings to this festive-themed show, even in the latter end of January. This really is a laugh-out-loud piece of theatre which unites everyone in the theatre for 2 hours of comedy genius.
The show begins in the audition room as director Chris Bean searches for an actor to play Scrooge, a role he'll take for himself. It takes a good 30 minutes before the play-within-the-play begins as we get a peek into the process, which you can imagine is already chaotic. With everything just about set and the cast eagerly stressing about the local papers critic being in, A Christmas Carol begins...
This being such a riotous comedy, it's difficult to talk about without giving too much away. There's some fantastic work with Libby Todd's set design. The stage becomes a playground for the madness that happens.
The play is further strengthened by the cast. Many of whom have been with Mischief for a number of years. It also stars two of the three writers and founders of Mischief. Henry Lewis (Robert) and Jonathan Sayer (Dennis) are big audience favourites, and their initial entrances are greeted with loud cheers. The writing, alongside Henry Shields, cleverly weaves jokes with big set-piece catastrophes. Jokes are foremention often long before you get the punchline. The comedy and mishaps keep coming and the relentless pace rarely stutters.
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| Photo by Matt Crockett. |
Daniel Fraser is outstanding as Chris Bean. The production's director is committed to the role of Scrooge despite the ensuing mayhem. His growing frustration makes him more and more perfectly cast in the role, despite Robert's constant attempts to keep him indisposed. There's a delicious moment of audience interaction midway through the second half, which brings huge laughter.
Henry Lewis as Robert, brings his naturalistic charm to the show. He delights in the delivery and the audience instantly warms to him. He takes on the role of The Ghost of Christmas Present (quite literally) in a real stand-out moment in the second act.
Jonathan Sayer is delightfully dumbfounded as Dennis. He is incapable of learning his lines, so his lines are scattered across the props and pieces of scenery. Sayer's delivery of this is particularly impressive; he truly knows how to land a laugh. Matt Cavendish has a constant glint in his eye as Max, he takes on numerous roles within the play. All Max wants to do is impress and he does that in bucketloads. Greg Tannahill's Jonathan is traumatised still by his previous role of Peter Pan, which he's still in therapy for. Tannahill delivers this extremely well; his anxiety about stepping onto a chair or ladder is well captured.
Chris Leask as techie Trevor is full of attitude, one that you'd not trust your safety with, and his Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come is quite something, and brazenly Scottish. Siobhan Cha Cha steps into understudying the role of Annie and does so with warmth and quiet calamity. Ashley Tucker tries to steer the ship, as Sandra, who narrates the unfolding story, no easy task! Tucker has a glint in her eye and relishes a nod and a wink to the audience.
What really makes this production work is the sense of teamwork that Mischief has. This is not just a team effort by those you can see on stage; it's also about those you can't see backstage. The precision timing it takes to make a gag land and the commitment nature of all involved really pays off.
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| Photo by Matt Crockett. |
Whilst there are a few stuttering moments on the whole, this is a production that you can't help but love. Even if you are unfamiliar with Mischief's previous work, you'll get the premise from early on. It's sublime comedy staged by people who understand the genre and know how to make it work. Long may the Cornley Drama Society and Mischief continue to stage rich hilarity. We all need a good laugh and this delivers so many. Just be warned, you'll never look at Tiny Tim the same way again...!
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Christmas Carol Goes Wrong plays at Nottingham's Theatre Royal until Saturday 31st January 2026. Tickets are sold out but keep an eye on any returns - https://trch.co.uk/whats-on/christmas-carol-goes-wrong-zpj4
The show plays on tour until Sunday 1st March 2026. For dates and venues visit https://www.mischiefcomedy.com/whats-on/christmas-carol-goes-wrong/tour/
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