Based on the real life recollections of George Takei (known to millions as Mr Sulu in Star Trek), writers Lorenzo Thione and Jay Kuo have created Following the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor in Dec 1941, the US Government ordered the rounding-up of 120,000 naturalised Japanese American citizens and their immediate internment at swiftly erected prison camps. Most detainees lost businesses, homes and possessions which had taken a lifetime to work for, and compensation when it did eventually reach the few many years later, was woefully inadequate.
Director and choreographer Tara Overfield Wilkinson was part of the original team who developed the 2012 New York creative workshop. Here, the resulting production has been overhauled and reimagined for its run at the Charing Cross Theatre until 8th April - demonstrating once again the capacity of this relatively small theatre to punch above its weight by attracting and developing work which both challenges and entertains its audiences.
Takei whilst frail and now in his mid-80s, makes his long dreamt of London stage debut in the production and still manages to deliver his lines with a mischievous twinkle and the kind of gentle playfulness for which he has become renowned through his ubiquitous online activist presence.
The remainder of the cast is divided into those with a kind of youthful drama school energy (which alway elicits a wry smile from critics) and the more experienced players who know how to deliver their stagecraft without signposting. Chief among the latter are Aynrand Ferrer, as Kei Kimura the feisty sister to Sammy, played by Telly Leung who as an American patriot first, demonstrates his allegiance to the Stars and Stripes by enlisting (and nearly dying) fighting Germans as part of the hastily assembled 442nd regiment. This regiment is composed of almost entirely second generation Japanese-Americans whose motto was "Go For Broke" and earned the dubious distinction of being the most decorated in American military history - albeit, invariably posthumously).
Whilst neither the songs nor the choreography are going to unduly worry the competition come awards season, there are a few beautifully delivered numbers worth mentioning, notably the comedic offering of Oughta Go, the showy company number of Paradise and Kei's ballad Higher which literally brought the house down and demonstrated the writer's skills when they aren't aiming for an amalgamation of Stephen Schwartz-meets-Disney.
In all, a worthwhile and compelling story told with heart, humour and compassion - just as we've come to expect from George Takei who has made it his mission to encourage us to overcome our prejudices, fears and celebrate our common humanity. Perhaps he is aiming for the stars, but if successful, it makes for quite the noble legacy after years of merely going where no man has gone before.
Do you enjoy the following: puns, parodies, pop music, noise, neon, shiny stuff, shrieking audiences. If you answered no, then