Creation
If you are like me and frequent broadway so much that you have seen most of the popular and iconic shows, and you want to know what you should watch next, let me tell you about one of the best musicals I’ve ever seen live. Operation Mincemeat is a musical comedy written and composed by David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson and Zoë Roberts who are all part of a musical comedy troupe called SpitLip. This musical first premiered in London in 2019 in an eighty-seat London basement venue, and has since transferred to the West End and Broadway.
Premise
This musical is set in 1943 during World War II, where the allied forces are looking for a way to seize Europe while also minimizing the number of casualties. Since they are severely outnumbered, this proves to be a more difficult task than anticipated. MI5 agents are asked to propose their best solutions and the plan that is picked seems like something out of a fiction novel. Their plan is to trick Hitler into moving the troops away from Sicily, where they are currently stationed, by dressing up a dead body and making him seem like he was a pilot from the allied forces killed in a crash, while he just so happened to be on his way to deliver falsified documents of their future attack plans. This musical is fast-paced and is full of twists and turns. The mission itself is successful and this true story inspired the work of fiction, James Bond, that so many know and love.
Critique
One of the biggest aspects that I feel is overlooked in theater is how important the technical aspects are, and how much they add to the show. From the moment the musical started, I couldn’t help but notice how much the lights contributed to the story. It added development to each character as well as helped with the advancement of the plot. The set also started out as simplistic, but as more set pieces were rolled onto the stage and backgrounds dropped from the fly, I was immersed into every location that took place throughout the show. The last and most notable aspect was the costumes. Although there were only five actors, each actor played two or more characters and each costume sold who every actor was playing. If you are looking for a lesser-known broadway show with true historical aspects, this is the show that I would recommend and I will definitely be going again before it closes in February.