‘Surreal’ is one of those words which can cover a multitude of definitions and is often misleadingly and lazily employed. It is, however, the perfect description of Three Fiends Theatre’s production of Magic Alan, running for two nights at The Golden Goose Theatre as part of the Lambeth Fringe season.
The eponymous magician, looking for his big break, seeks to force his way into an appearance at the annual Help the Children Charity Gala, seeking to wow everyone with his card tricks, the sudden appearance of colourful ribbons and, of course, a toy dove. This is Alan’s big moment, his chance to become a performer. He pleads with the uptight, stressed Event Director Elaine to “…. just give me a chance. You don’t have to pay me. One shot, that’s all I am asking.”
So far, so broadly conventional. Then, the escalating bizarre absurdity of the narrative kicks in.
In his increasingly frenetic attempts to ingratiate himself with Elaine, Alan employs a spell which he had obtained from someone in Leicester Square and conjures up the Devil, transmogrifying Elaine into a snarling Demon, her Beelzebub imprecations and snarling, existing cheek by jowl with occasional moments of lucidity, amusingly berating Alan for delivering this metamorphosis in the middle of a Charity gig for children.
The escalating outlandish chaos precipitated by this rather unusual plot development now expands to introduce the audience to a cast of rather ludicrous characters.
Here is Julie, an over emotional mass of neuroses and scatterbrained insecurities, on the edge of hysteria and panic. We also meet Mel, a clear sighted, cynical talent spotter, agent and vamp, a startling vision in pink satin who is considering taking Alan under her rather suffocating wing.
Then there’s Penny, the incredibly glamorous patron of the charity night, with a penchant for champagne and expensive frocks, who, it transpires, has a rather personal experience of the world of prestidigitation, having served as a magic partner to Glen, the big cheese of the current set up, who has more secrets than tricks and whose relationship with Alan takes the narrative down yet another convoluted route.
Each actor takes on two of these roles and skilfully delivers very different and believable interpretations of each character; an extremely impressive feat, and acting kudos must go to the ensemble of Gregor Roach, Natasha McAteer and Beth Beaden, (who is also the author of the piece).
The set is appropriately an untidy backstage area replete with discarded pizza boxes, magic props and, of course, the requisite, though rather flimsy, ‘magic cabinet’.
Lighting and sound were largely complementary to the action, although at times the music was very loud and occasionally smothered the dialogue. Costumes were all appropriate and helped to emphasise the status and nature of the characters.
Magic Alan is a massively high energy, high chaos show about thwarted ambition, the fear of failure, (both professional and personal), and the enduring intoxication and obsession with ‘making it’, with the big break always just out of reach. Not forgetting the Dr Faustus like appearance of a demon!
Amidst the escalating turbulent anarchy, there is even time for a quiet moment of reflection upon the importance of family ties, which forms an unexpected, yet welcome poignancy.
However, more than anything else this is a vigorous energetic romp, an hour of (yes) surreal madness that stands or falls by the ability of the cast to throw themselves into the narrative with brio and intensity.
They certainly succeed in this aspect of the production. To use a common sporting analogy, the actors ‘leave everything out on the pitch’, and give their all to help drive forward the bewildering, often outlandish plot.
However, energy and pace are sometimes not quite enough. However committed the cast, the overall structure of a production has to be present to deliver the requisite level of support they require and, in this case, deserve. At this stage in its evolution, Magic Alan does not quite give them that.
There is an uneven rhythm to the piece. The first 20 minutes fly by, with plenty of laugh-out-loud moments and the narrative fizzes along, underpinned by excellent characterisation. Thereafter, it throws too many ingredients into the pudding, with reflections on ambition, familial responsibilities, hope and desire sometimes impeding the development of the plot and the flow of the story. The latter half of the show sometimes gave the impression of becoming a series of vignettes shoehorned into the narration, rather than maintaining a coherent whole. When this happens, there is also the danger of crafted humorous bewilderment occasionally slipping into self-indulgence.
In an enlightening interview about the play, author Beth Beaden says that Magic Alan “…is all about creativity and play, so there’s no doubt that [it] will grow and change as it moves.”
Hopefully, this will be the case. Currently, whilst there is much to admire about Magic Alan, not least of which is the originality and creativity of its premise, its programme notes (in the form of playing cards), and the excellent characterisations and joie de vivre of its ensemble playing, it remains a bit of a curate’s egg, and will no doubt improve as a tighter structure and narrative rigidity is imposed upon it.
Magic Alan is Three Fiends Theatre’s first show as a production company. They are certainly a team to keep an eye on, and I look forward to seeing and hearing a lot more from them in the future.
Review by Johnny Oxford
An original comedy about one very bad magician, one extremely important event, and one demon who just won’t go away.
Alan has one dream; to hit the big time as a magician. Not to summon the armies of hell and subjugate all humanity under the yolk of demonic servitude. Unfortunately life doesn’t always turn out how we want it to. When Alan crashes the Annual Help the Children Charity Gala, he expects to shoot to fame with his card tricks. He doesn’t expect to encounter Elaine, the tightly-wound Event Director, who simply cannot allow this career-defining event to be derailed by shoddy showmanship… or supernatural chaos.
As the situation spirals, we meet a cast of delightfully unhelpful characters: Julie, Elaine’s overly emotional assistant; Mel, romantically optimistic despite it all; Penny, a fabulous Magician’s Assistant; Glen, Penny’s old magic partner with more secrets than tricks, and of course, the demon itself, who’s just happy to be included. Chaotic, heartfelt, and completely ridiculous, Magic Alan is a high-energy, high-chaos romp about failure, family, and what happens when your big break opens a portal to hell.
MAGIC ALAN
Golden Goose Theatre, 10 and 11 October 2025
Presented as part of The Lambeth Fringe
