Review: Lord Arthur Savile's Crime*****

There are few opportunities to experience pure melodrama played as it should be. But Christopher Luscombe's stylised production of a new and original version of Oscar Wilde's Lord Arthur Savile's Crime resurrects those elements of this strand of theatre that have long been forgotten.

Melodrama is a play with musical accompaniment and the specially composed score, and the musicians on stage, play an integral part in this production. Add to this light and low comedy, a chocolate box set within a set, and a series of tableaux and the result is melodrama at its finest.

The plot involves a clean-cut, deliriously happy hero Lord Arthur, who is on the verge of marriage until he meets Podgers, a clairvoyant, who tells him he will commit a murder. Anxious to get it over with before his marriage to the demure, virtuous heroine Sybil, he embarks on a plan of action – not without some setbacks involving exploding clocks, poisons and Russian conspirators. However, in the true spirit of the Victorian melodrama, in the early hours on the banks of the Thames, he eventually performs the dastardly deed which leads to a happy ending.

Lee Mead, winner of the BBC's hit show Any Dream Will Do, makes his drama debut as Lord Arthur Savile. He is dashing, debonair and believable and tackles the marathon role with gusto. As Septimus Podgers, the clairvoyant, Gary Wilmot shows just how good a character actor he is, striking just the right balance between the intensity and comedy of the role.

With meticulous attention to detail in both sets and costumes, this is a brilliant production. Don't miss it.

To Apr 3.