A medieval romp in name more than spirit, Nonsense Theatre’s outdoor Twelfth Night offers competent Shakespeare with welcome strong flashes of comedy.
Rating
Good
I love nonsense. I find the medieval period fascinating, and I enjoy few things as much as a romp. So, imagine my delight when the marketing for this perfect-for-a-summer-evening production of Twelfth Night in London’s Actors’ Church Garden promised all three. It lists references from the predictable Monty Python & The Holy Grail and The Princess Bride to the less obvious Robin Hood: Men in Tights and, bizarrely, I thought, Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. Sadly for all involved, instead, the production delivers a perfectly sound but rather pedestrian version of Shakespeare’s most boisterous comedy. There’s a phrase for this: overpromising and underdelivering.
Putting this aside, there’s nothing hugely wrong with this Twelfth Night, but director Niamh Handley-Vaughan, who also plays Maria, hasn’t put much of a stamp on it. Beyond some token costume and prop choices, her staging lacks the drive, urgency, and wit you often see in outdoor Shakespeare productions with their limited production values. Coconut horse hooves feel like a particularly tired idea in 2026. Talking of tired, the show takes almost ninety minutes to reach the interval, which feels a stretch and, noticeably, a couple of audience members didn’t come back after the break.
This is a shame because straight after the interval, Chloe Orrock, as Malvolia (not O), arrives wearing the infamous yellow cross garters and delivers by far the show’s best set piece. Some actors are born with great comic timing, some achieve great comic timing, etc. I’m not sure which applies to Orrock, but she’s clearly a talent to watch. We could hear every word, too. Other moments elsewhere in the show were, sadly, lost in the summer air or at least rumbled by city noise. This is especially true of some of the contemporary songs acoustically interspersed throughout the action, which feels like a shame.
There are strong creative casting choices throughout. There can’t be many Sir Toby Belch’s as blonde as Kitty Mason, for example. Asking jovial, bearded Jed McLoughlin to double as Sir Andrew and Sebastian, dispensing with the very notion of a resemblance to Viola (Cara Heal), is bold and leads to one of the funniest moments of the night. Other comic moments include an unexpected rendition of Chappell Roan’s ‘Hot To Go’, Sir Andrew’s duel, and Sir Topaz’s beard. The problem is there aren’t really enough jokes to justify a running time of almost three hours, despite a published runtime of 2hrs and 20 min.
The sun had definitely set by the time all the plot points had been tied up, the gender reveal had been revealed, the marriage proposals had been accepted, and Malvolia, in what must be one of the finest exits in all theatre, had sworn bitter revenge on everyone present. Frankly, this isn’t a show to see if you fancy dinner afterwards.
There is no denying that Nonsense Theatre’s Twelfth Night is, overall, good fun. Its marketing promise, however, suggests the potential for a more genuinely medieval romp that delivers more original nonsense with, please, more of an eye on the clock.
Directed by Niamh Handley-Vaughan
Co-directed by Cara Heal
Musical Director: Cara Heal
Produced by Jed McLoughlin and Cara Heal for Nonsense Theatre
Stage Manager: Mel Hughes
The show has completed its performance at The Actors’ Church, but continues a short tour until Sunday July 12
