Underdog: The Different Different Brontë is a brand new play by Sarah Gordon presently taking part in the Dorfman on the Nationwide Theatre. Winner of the celebrated Nick Darke Award in 2020, Underdog is just not a narrative about well-behaved ladies. In reality, on this new play the Brontë sisters are put by way of their paces as Charlotte has a confession about how one sister turned an idol, and the opposite turned generally known as the third sister. You already know the one. No, not that one. The opposite, different one… Anne. Sure, that’s proper Underdog is an irreverent retelling of the life and legend of the Brontë sisters and the story of the sibling energy dynamics that formed their uneven rise to fame.

“What’s your favourite Brontë novel?” This query lingered in my thoughts as a assured Charlotte Brontë burst into the auditorium originally of the present, addressing the viewers.

Proper from the beginning, it was evident that this story of the Brontë sisters wouldn’t resemble a typical, dry English lesson. Gemma Whelan’s confident Charlotte Brontë led the evenings motion in a tour-de-force efficiency. Whelan gave an brisk efficiency that exuded confidence as her Charlotte navigated her difficult relationship along with her household by way of humor, heartfelt emotion and wit. Adele James gave an equally thrilling efficiency as Emily Brontë. Robust and impartial all through, her Emily gave pretty much as good she might take accumulating in an emotional speech simply earlier than her (spoiler)… loss of life the place she accused Charlotte of being uncaring in the direction of her youthful sister Anne. Rhiannon Clements had maybe the most-rounded character journey in Anne Brontë. From youngest sister discovering herself to forgotten creator, Clements used her chopping wit and talent to tug on the audiences heart-strings to craft a efficiency that was very affecting. As their solely brother, James Phoon appeared to be having quite a lot of enjoyable as Branwell Brontë. From an on stage water fights to his (spoiler)… premature loss of life, Phoon carried out with aplomb bringing this delicate younger aspiring painter to life.

The ensemble forged of males offered implausible assist taking part in a number of characters, shortly altering costume and bounding again on stage in lots of memorable moments. A standout second occurred when Charlotte and Anne concurrently revealed themselves as feminine writers to their respective brokers, portrayed by Adam Donaldson as Thomas Newby and Julian Moore-Prepare dinner as George Smith, in a rapid-fire dialogue scene that yielded vastly completely different outcomes. One other implausible second occurred when a fast onstage costume change noticed Nick Blakeley rework into Mrs Ingham early in Act One after which later change into horse hoofs in a Monty Python-esque gag that the viewers ate up. In different components of the play you couldn’t take your eyes of Kwaku Mills as he reworked from the younger devious Tabby to a seething theatre critic to a completely hilarious Cunliffe.

Whereas I’m certain some Brontë purists could have plenty of say about Underdog’s remedy of their heroines, this recounting of the Brontë sisters rise to fame is geared in the direction of a up to date viewers. A lot of swearing and fashionable speech patterns see the viewers isn’t removed from a joke and the performs wit, stagecraft and efficiency make Underdog a particularly gratifying watch. Transferring to the Northern Stage later within the yr, The Nationwide Theatre has Underdog operating till Might. So leap on the subsequent horse and carriage to ensure you don’t miss the prospect to see this pleasant gem on the Dofrman Theatre.

Reviewed by Stuart James