Slava’s Snowshow, Harold Pinter Theatre Review
Photo by Veronique Vial
Written by Cathie for Theatre and Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review
The West End has been chock full of tragedies and deeply serious plays the last few months so Slava Polunin's Snow Show has returned to London for the first time in over seven years to rescue us from misery.
It is difficult to truly capture the wonder and sheer exhilarating joy this show produces. We are brought to the edge of dreamland and watch Polunin's older and younger self clown across the stage and, with a half dozen clown entourage explore the boundaries between our dreams and waking lives. The staging is simple but deceptively brilliant in bringing your subconscious dreams to life. There are many different sketches and scenarios portrayed and without many spoilers my favourites included the sailing boat bed and the tilted table. You’re balancing on the edge of your seat in laughter as you wonder what madcap scheme will happen next. The snow globe finale is phenomenally brilliant and equally chaotic and I will not forget it for a very long time. It will literally and figuratively blow any cynicism and misery away from you and leave you filled with childlike wonder and joy.
Polunin's mastery of the stage and audience is absolute. He doesn’t talk at all but his use of body language maintains complete mastery over us all. He manages to communicate with a raised eyebrow far more than many a Shakespeare monologue. He effortlessly brings the plot between comedy and tragedy and immaculately showcases clowning in its purest and most wondrous form. At 74 he also spends a fair amount of the show watching the highlights from the royal circle and reflects as much as controls the narrative of the show. He is truly the sun that this show turns upon and gently guides us through this magical break from the world. The clown playing his younger self is also fantastic and truly had all of us in stitches of laughter and really brought such playful energy to the tragicomedy of the show.
This show is certainly enjoyable from every part of the theatre but the stalls are where the biggest immersive magic is. When you arrive you might wonder why there is so much confetti everywhere. This will be answered very swiftly and humorously. A little tip is that in the interval if you get a drink and the theatre staff offer the sippy cup, I would strongly suggest using it in the stalls to save it from snow. The interval is still highly interactive and I spent much of it dodging the clowns climbing across the different seats and showering us with their umbrellas.
Although this is a show that will bring comedic tears of mirth to any age, it has a special place in the hearts of children. The audience absolutely loved this show. I overheard several children remarking that it was the best show ever and others demanding that their parents bring them back again because it was so funny. This show managed to bridge the gap between childhood and adulthood with such precision that few shows would be able to emulate as well. The shorter running time of 1 hour 40 minutes also means that younger children will also find it highly accessible.
This was honestly one of the theatre highlights of my entire year. Even the coldest Scrooge would be unable to resist the joy and wonder of this show. If you are interested in light hearted clown shows that will amaze your children, wipe misery from your mind and leave your ribs aching in laughter then this is the show for you.
At Harold Pinter Theatre 12th January 2025
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
