Dr Strangelove review: Steve Coogan triumphs in Kubrick's Cold War satire
Coogan finally lays the ghost of Alan Partridge to rest for a challenging four roles in Armando Iannucci's stage adaptation of the classic film
Steve Coogan takes on four roles in Armando Iannucci’s stage adaptation of Stanley Kubrick’s 1964 Cold War satire, which is one more than Peter Sellers did in the film. It’s a tall order even for someone as versatile as Coogan and it is to his credit that he scores highly in all four. The blackest of black comedies, it depicts what happens when an unhinged US General orders a nuclear strike on Russia, precipitating a retaliation that would annihilate all life on the planet.
Director and co-adapter Sean Foley maintains the tension and the comedy throughout with remarkable nimbleness and Coogan manages the quick changes necessary with the help of a very good dresser waiting in the wings. Largely located in the Pentagon's ‘War Room’ (Hildegard Bechtler’s set gets a round of applause) where President Muffley and his chiefs of staff attempt to stop the process as the panic level rises, it recreates the movie’s momentum with great fidelity. Best of all, the arrival of a B-52 bomber that noses its way onto the stage against a video backdrop of clouds is genuinely impressive.
In an ash blonde wig and scooting around in a wheelchair, Coogan’s Strangelove is faithful to the Wernher von Braun-like character without replicating Sellers’ performance. As the bewildered British officer Captain Mandrake he is vocally a dead ringer for King Charles III which adds to the fun. The dialogue is largely unchanged and we have the pleasure of hearing “Gentlemen, you can’t fight in here! This is the War Room!” among other classic lines.
The remaining cast rise to the occasion, particularly John Hopkins as the psychotic General Jack Ripper who kicks off the catastrophic chain of events while holding Mandrake at bay with a formidable arsenal of firearms, Giles Terera as the gung-ho General Turgidson and Penny Ashmore as an authentic-sounding Vera Lynn. But it’s Coogan’s triumph and he finally lays the ghost of the tiresome (for me, anyway) Alan Partridge.
The full title of Kubrick’s movie is Dr Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb. My version should read: How I Learned to Stop Criticising and Love Steve Coogan.
Dr Strangelove will be at the Noel Coward Theatre until January 25
Tickets: 0344 482 5151
