Immersive and engaging Viking tales and songs beneath the streets of Waterloo. Rating
Good
Hmm, immersive theatre? Audience participation? You may well already be scanning for the exits with panicked eyes. But fear not, with Charlie Blanshard and Oliver Strong at the helm of this Viking celebration of imagination, joie de vivre (for the Normans who came after) and carpe diem (for the Romans before them). The pair are welcoming and demonstrate a genuine enthusiasm for the history and people of the Vikings, of whom the audience is invited to join in a night of singing, toasting and (Bluetooth) connection. Much like the rune, they seek to bring ancient culture into the modern day and show our desires, hopes and fears are not so different from these ancestors.
Jorvik is largely really successful. Both performers have the requisite charisma and bring different energies in their many roles. Strong acts as an omniscient narrator of sorts, introducing and framing the hour ahead. He can joke about speakers or hand out laminated sheets of dialogue or song as he forms the link between the audience and the Viking tales. Nominative determinism has given him the booming voice and imposing frame that would lead you not to start your own brawl with him; a convincing proto-Viking. Blanshard meanwhile plays a more ‘straight guy’ role, primarily as the historical figure Ubba who is the major character of the narrative sections. This allows them to strike a balance between creating an experience and telling a story. And no, apparently that’s not a wig, Blanshard naturally has luscious straight hair to rival Elrond.
However, by trying to juggle a number of disciplines a few factors fall through the cracks. By switching between audience interaction and telling the saga, some fundamentals feel muddled. The timeline jumps back and forth before it later settles into a more thematic schema, while the sense of place is a bit confusing – is this a voyage, a feast on Earth or in Valhalla? Perhaps when played to a group of Viking enthusiasts in York, where the show is set and from where it originates, much of the tale is de rigueur; it may make little sense to laboriously mete out the history when the audience are meant to be part of it. It must be an impressive sight to see this positioned in the eponymous JORVIK Centre in York.
The production aspires to create a sense of universal humanity, suggesting these people from history were just like us. This does happen, but it never really becomes the emotional heart it feels like it wants to be nor the predominant feeling to be taken away. Instead, it’s the occasion, theatre and sense of participation that will stay with the audience, despite some very earnestly acted sequences about family and legacy.
The most effective collective experience is no doubt ‘Þat mælti mín móðir’ (or the Viking song ‘My Mother Told Me’ – come on, you know the words!). It’s quite catchy and it didn’t take long for our little band to grow in confidence with it. The acoustics underground at The Glitch lent themselves both to our voices and to this style of intimate (although often loud) theatre where Strong and Blanshard often sit in the circle among the audience.
The night is a lot of fun and afterwards you can claim to be one of the few to have graced Valhalla and returned to tell the tale.
Written by Charlie Blanshard
Associate Producer: Oliver Towse
Jorvik plays at The Glitch until Monday 9 Febraury, before embarking on a UK tour and the
Jorvik Viking Festival, Europe’s largest Viking Festival
