Theatre review: "Oh, Mary!"

Americans have a tendency to overestimate how much other countries share their national preoccupations, and you can't say that's not the case in whoever decided that London probably cares enough about Mary Todd Lincoln to sustain two different shows about her, a couple of streets apart. For me personally this seemed a bit too much of Abraham Lincoln's first lady to invest in both, so despite Keala Settle playing her in a dramatic version down the road, I went instead for the much more deranged show that's been an award-winning cult hit in New York, Cole Escola's Quote Oh Comma Mary Exclamation Mark End Quote. Mason Alexander Park plays Mary, the drunken First Lady who took to whiskey once she realised being married to the President during a Civil War meant she probably wouldn't be able to realise her dreams of cabaret stardom.

To try and pacify her, Mary's Husband (Giles Terera, getting upgraded from playing a Vice-President to a President) arranges for her to have acting lessons, never intending for the outcome to be seen in public. But Mary's Teacher (Dino Fetscher) is a failed actor with an all-too-familiar name, so this is clearly not going to end well.

Escola's show has marketed itself largely with the word "stupid," and "Oh, Mary!" definitely delivers, revelling in its own stupidity. Park shows why the title role has attracted a rotating cast of stars of all genders across the Pond, with a frantic, very funny performance that jumps wildly from confused desperation to a kind of Miss Piggy growl at any suggestion that people don't take her entirely seriously. Her favourite target is her Chaperone (Kate O'Donnell,) who early on makes the mistake of admitting to enjoying an unusual use for ice cream, and is never allowed to live it down.

The play also takes the speculation around Abraham Lincoln's sexuality and runs with it - Terera's Lincoln is as easily distracted by his Assistant (Oliver Stockley) bending over as he is by trying to win a war. This is a comedy that misses no opportunity for a gag - Ben thought it had the best hit rate since Police Cops - and Sam Pinkleton's production complements this with a frantic physicality that includes Mary getting stuck on top of her husband's desk and completely forgetting how a human being might move to get down.

Mary's love of cabaret means we know the show is going to climax in one of her trademark, deranged medleys, and when it does come it's a suitably random collection of songs that allows Park to showcase their pipes alongside their comic skills. Other than that it's once again a case of being able to say little more than listing jokes, so I'll just say that if you're someone who usually enjoys the sort of incredibly silly comedies that I tend to recommend, this one is probably right up your street as well.

"Oh, Mary!" by Cole Escola is booking until the 25th of April at the Trafalgar Theatre.

Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes straight through.

Photo credit: Manuel Harlan.