The multi award winning Avenue Q is on tour and has come to the Queens Theatre Hornchurch and I am pleased to report it is fantastic! Meet Princeton; Young, fresh out of college, naive and lacking in purpose. He moves to the colourful and somewhat rundown, Avenue Q and soon makes friends with its collection of vibrant characters. Princeton makes it his goal to find purpose for his life, and this coming of age story sees him win and lose all that he really desires.

Avenue Q shares many similarities to Sesame Street and though it must be said has no connection whatsoever, several of the characters have more than a passing resemblance to their Sesame Street neighbours. Another similarity is the fact that some characters are humans and some characters are monster puppets, and some characters are human puppets. But for people familiar with this as a form of entertainment (all be it usually for children) it is readily accepted by the audience.

One of the most interesting facets of this production is that the puppeteers are not hidden for most of the performance. They stand in plain view next to the puppets they operate without attempting to hide their movements or voices. Apart from some plain dark clothes, the puppeteers are very obviously present. But it is almost instantaneously that we forget that they are there and we accept that the puppets themselves are the performers on stage, and with this lies one of Avenue Q’s greatest triumphs.

This is a puppet show, but don’t be fooled; this show is definitely not for children. The guidance is, it is not for children under the age of 14, but having children myself, I would cautiously suggest parents may not want to take children younger than 16. Musical numbers such as ‘The Internet is for Porn’ and ‘Everyone’s a Little bit Racist.’ give you an idea of the content of the show.

The performers in this production are outstanding. They are as good as any I have seen on a West End stage and their skill is truly something to behold. They are acting, puppeteering and singing all at the same time and every member of the cast does so to an incredibly high standard. There were several stand out performances including Jessica Parker as Mrs T and Bad Idea Bear, Richard Lowe as Princeton and Rod and a delightfully stereotyped performance of Arina II as Christmas Eve. But for me the runaway star of the show was Sarah Harlington, whose vocals as Kate Monster and Lucy the Slut, were truly remarkable and something very special to experience indeed.

Avenue Q is an extremely funny and sometimes touching show and I can happily recommend it. A great night out and highly professional and polished production, but be quick as the run ends at The Queens Theatre Hornchurch this Saturday 6th February.

Chris

For further information:

https://www.queens-theatre.co.uk/show/772/avenue-q

All pictures copy write Matt Martin Photography and used with the permission of the Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch.