Theatre Review: Around the World in 80 Days at the Arcola

A cast of three actors, all delivering lines with spot-on humour, make the classic tale of Around the World in 80 Days at the Arcola a must see.

Simon Snashall as Fix of the Yard and Iain Ridley as Passepartout - Credit: Archant

Jules Verne’s epic story is brought to life in an adaptation by Toby Hulse which will delight both youngsters and adults.

From left to right: Iain Ridley, Matt Odell and Simon Snashall - Credit: Archant

With Matt Odell as the charming Victorian adventurer Phileas Fogg and Iain Ridley as his sidekick Passepartout accompanying him as he rushes to complete a journey across the globe in record time, Simon Snashall plays cockney copper Fix of the Yard who attempts to foil his £20,000 wager.

The slapstick action generates plenty of laughs as the trio take on a score of other roles, most hilariously an Indian princess.

Farce is rife and a charming scene sees Fix plying Passepartout with Port to try and make Fogg miss the boat on the next leg of his journey, while y four-year old daughter is still animatedly telling friends about the ship storm scene where Passepartout sprays Fix in the face with a water canister. More laughs come when the men all end up in their pants after feeding the steam boat’s furnace everything available to make reach the shores of Ireland.

Arcola Theatre’s new Studio 2 theatre, which opened in November as part of its refurbishment, makes the perfect intimate setting to get close to the action and catch the actors’ comical expressions.

Runs until February x at The Arcola in Ashwin Street, Dalston.