REVIEW: THE EMPEROR’S NEW CLOTHES Baby Lamb Productions at Canal Cafe Theatre / Camden Fringe 21 – 23 Aug 2023

‘This fast-paced production had all the essential elements of a good farce’ ★★★★

“The Emperor’s New Clothes” is a famous folktale written by Danish author, Hans Christian Andersen (April 1805 - August 1875). The story goes that a proud emperor who spends lavishly on clothing, gets deceived by two swindlers and finds himself exposed before his entourage.

The Baby Lamb Productions company’s cast members had the audience in stitches at their debut production of “The Emperor’s New Clothes” showing at the Canal Cafe Theatre in the heart of Little Venice. The energy was high from the very beginning to the end. The audience was entertained with an opening catwalk showcasing the Winter collection of German fashion designer extravagant extraordinaire, Jacob Baird’s The Emperor. The actors turned models for the night displayed an array of very sustainable clothing collections, using highly upcycled materials that will appeal to the environmentally friendly conscious fashion consumers in this 21st century world we live in. We were spoilt for choice. A body wrap made of laundry bed sheets accessorised with a grey laundry basket for head piece. An overcoat made of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) material, accessorised with a black bin bag (yes, a rubbish bag) for a handbag. A yellow canary body wrap with hems decorated with yellow rubber gloves. A white single sized duvet was upcycled into an overcoat complete with armholes and a teddy bear for buckle. A feast for the eyes. It was hilarious. It was comical. It was bonkers.

The superficiality of the world of high fashion is accentuated by the lifestyle choices of the people who live in it. We laugh at their behaviour. And yet somehow in the midst of the finger pointing taking place, these situations call for some introspection at our very own behaviour. The meditative therapy session taken by The Emperor where he was being led into an imaginary world, himself eventually becoming a goldfish, was actually very suggestive of the many acting methods available in the acting world. The romp between Kip O’Sullivan’s sexy Johan with pouting lips and Nisha Emich’s feisty and sensual hipster Areola was non-committal and their relationship was taken light-heartedly. Johan was easily attracted by a mysterious glamorous Hollywood diva looking Kiera Murray’s Edna, or was it by her ‘chien’ / dog. Areola became upset and decided to walk away and seek solace and healing at a hippie retreat.

This fast-paced production had all the essential elements of a good farce. Stereotyped characters took centre stage all throughout the one hour show. Hannah McLeod’s Alexa was The Emperor’s dutiful and resourceful assistant, mistaken for the virtual assistant technology Amazon Alexa. In the glitzy fashion world in which The Emperor rules, some of his other assistants were seen to be plain clothed, lacking any fashion sense and as a result they became subjects of mockery. Janik Rajapakse’s Yanik was scorned for always wearing a plain black T-Shirt, be it at work or even at the seaside. Nisha Emich’s Maureen was constantly being sidelined despite being the efficient financier of the empire. Kip O’Sullivan’s Johan being unable to express himself in words to describe his awe of the invisible beauty of The Emperor’s new clothes, he broke into a powerful contemporary lyrical dance expression that left a lasting impression on The Emperor. We also had Bree and Oche, played by Hannah and Kiera, the humorous French swindlers duo both wearing a French trench coat and a red beret, amusing the audience with their intermittent back and forth dialogues, sometimes finishing the sentences of the other and at other times, interrupting the other. They finally manage to be synchronous by delivering in one breath, a breathtaking description of their new creation, “This mesmerising cloth has an iridescent silver sheen and kaleidoscopic swirls stitched in gold thread with delicate chains welded into teardrops woven along the sleeves lined with the finest silk of the most rich vermilion.”

As was said in the beginning, the story goes that a vain emperor who spends lavishly on clothing, gets deceived and finds himself exposed before his entourage. Expectantly, the audience members waited patiently and avidly until the final reveal of Ze Emperor in all his glory. Kudos to the weavers and knitters of the male anatomy. This production has rightly been classified as being suitable for ages 16 and over.

Produced by Baby Lamb Productions

Directed by Hannah McLeod

Box Office Link: https://camdenfringe.com/events/the-emperors-new-clothes/

Created by the cast (Jacob Baird, Sasha Brooks, Nisha Emich, Hannah McLeod, Kip O'Sullivan and Janik Rajapakse)

Reviewed by Melanie Lam