Theatre Review || Ocean at the End of the Lane

Posted on November 24, 2021

When I heard that the Nationals 2019’s hit ‘Ocean at the End of the Lane’ was going to be transferring to the Duke of York theatre in 2021, I grabbed tickets greedily. I had missed my chance to see it the first time around and I wasn’t going to miss the transfer! This play is an adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s dark fairytale by the same name, which I loved when I first read it.

Oceans at the End off the Lane was absolutely brilliant. Neil Gaiman’s coming-of-age story is incredible source material by Katy Rudd’s production does a staggering job with it. The monsters that are created by the ensemble are a real coup de theatre and are magnificently terrifying. The visual effects are both simple and awe-inducing and the physicality displayed by the ensemble and by Laura Rogers’ as the succubus (Ursula Moncton) that has infiltrated the family are one of the best parts of the entire show. It was a visceral, vivid experience that harkened back to the magical time of childhood dreams as well as nightmares.

The Boy (James Bamford) is somewhat one-dimensional; more a sum of his anxieties than a real boy. However, his sister (played by Grace Hogg-Robinson) is so perfect in the role that as long as you aren’t an only child, you’ll have flashbacks to arguments with your siblings. Nicolas Tennant delivers a nuanced and emotional performance both as the Boys father, and the Boy when he is older.

Paule Constable’s moody, Olivier Award-winning lighting is also key to this magical, frightening nostalgia, as are Jamie Harrison’s illusions, Samuel Wyer’s puppetry, Ian Dickinson’s sound and Steven Hoggett’s movement. Hogget’s choreography recalls the staging of his work in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Dickinson’s sound evokes The Stranger Things soundtrack. It’s a beautiful production.
Whilst immersed in the world of grief and evil and family misunderstandings, you leave the theatre wondering about the nature of generational violence and death whilst at the same time gasping at the magic that is the theatre.
5 stars.

As an fyi, I bought restricted view seats as the purse strings are tight at the moment, and I was still able to see absolutely everything with a tiny bit of leaning.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane runs to 24 April, Duke of York’s Theatre, WC2.