Have you ever been told the story of Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde by a pack of flirtatious Frenchies who can’t keep themselves on topic? Did they have access to special effects and a box of gaudy costumes at the time?

If you answered no, chances are you haven’t yet seen Jekyll and Hyde by New Zealand’s A Slightly Isolated Dog.

The mayhem begins before the audience even have a chance to take their seats, as the five actors rush out of the auditorium to welcome (and flirt with) those attending. The coquettish cast immediately put the audience at ease with their playfulness and outrageous accents, strutting and chatting their way around the space before gradually shifting to a group conversation on the struggles of life, from bills to romance, and eventually the darkness inside. This transitions nicely to the story of Doctor Henry Jekyll, who tried to dispel his dark urges and ended up creating his evil alter ego Edward Hyde, with all its bloody consequences.

A Slightly Isolated Dog takes this classic gothic tale and turns it upside down as a hilarious high camp farce. In this bonkers adaptation, all cast take turns narrating and playing the titular characters, easily indicated by a simple piece of costume, supplemented by voice effects and bespoke lighting (handheld torches). The production runs at a rapid pace which almost reaches the point of sensory overload as multiple cast have conversations with different sections at the same time. At all times, they lean into the silly and chaotic, with this sense of chaos amplified by the unusual stage layout, with most of the action taking place in a corridor ‘stage’ area in between two long blocks of audience, with the cast continuously moving through the audience and the central space. The action is constant and ever-moving though, so it never feels as though the audience are watching the performers’ backs.

Throughout the performance, the cast are supported by a very willing audience, some of whom are called on to play the story’s many minor characters, including Jekyll’s friends and Hyde’s victims and even the ex-lover of one of the cast members! The cast expertly guide their guest-stars through these roles with cue cards and props, and with the jovial audience spirit these cameos are all ridiculous fun. 

The show is peppered with musical interludes of pop songs sung by the cast, with impressive vocal layering, while the sound and lighting design add to the sense of melodrama. The atmospheric props, including the ‘sensual fog’ all heighten this absurd silliness that is the central to this show.

This show is a fabulous example of camp parody – a riotously fun pandemonium delivered with impeccable skill and timing that left all laughing with just the right amount of confusion.