Derren Brown is no stranger to London theatre. He has previously taken home two Olivier Awards for his stage work, with several more nominations to his name. This return to the West End with Only Human follows a successful UK and Ireland tour, but despite many past triumphs, there seems to be something distinctly human missing from this latest offering.
It’s difficult to say too much about the content of the show, as much of the pleasure comes from watching the illusions unfold in real time. Brown has built a career on ambitious feats of mind-reading, psychological manipulation and theatrical misdirection, and audiences can expect more of the same here. Yet while the individual tricks may intrigue, what’s noticeably absent is the storytelling that has often bound his previous shows together.
Written by Brown, Andrew O’Connor and Stephen Long, and directed by O’Connor, Only Human feels like the most disjointed of Brown’s productions to date. There are thematic links between the various illusions, but little sense of an overarching dramatic through-line. As a result, much of what unfolds on stage appears to exist simply because it can, rather than because it serves a larger purpose.
This press performance began twenty minutes late, despite the audience already being seated and ready to go. The show also overran, pushing the evening beyond the three-hour mark, and it certainly felt every minute of it. The first act, in which several elements needed for later reveals are painstakingly established, moves at too slow a pace. Having finally got underway, the production’s first requirement is that a significant number of audience members leave the auditorium (only to return a few minutes later). Anyone who has ever tried to exit a West End theatre from the middle of a row can imagine the chaos that follows.
There is more movement later in the act, resulting in coats and bags becoming separated from their owners. When we’re not desperately trying to rearrange ourselves, we’re waiting. Waiting for a randomly selected audience member to descend from the Grand Circle, sometimes simply to hand over a piece of paper, or waiting for someone on stage to decipher increasingly convoluted instructions from Brown.
By the interval, surprisingly few illusions have actually taken place. The second act fares better, with a stronger pace and a greater sense that things are finally progressing. The climactic reveal is undoubtedly impressive, even if it’s perhaps a little easier than intended to work out how it has been achieved. One illusion in the second half is unquestionably a remarkable technical accomplishment, but rather than entertaining, it proves deeply unsettling and genuinely uncomfortable to watch, prompting yet more audience members to make for the exits.
What ultimately lets Only Human down is that it simply isn’t slick enough. For a performer whose reputation rests on meticulous control, there are moments that feel surprisingly ragged. At one point, Brown asks a volunteer to select one of three items; when she chooses the wrong one, he simply overrules her and directs her to the correct choice. Elsewhere, when a randomly selected participant struggles to understand the instructions, they are replaced by someone Brown chooses himself. Combined with the amount of dead time spent waiting for various processes to unfold, what should be a thrilling evening of entertainment often becomes an exercise in patience.
From a production standpoint, the contributions of set designer Simon Higlett, video designer Simon Wainwright, lighting designer Charlie Morgan Jones and sound designer Beth Duke help create an appropriately atmospheric environment, but strong technical work can only do so much when the material itself lacks momentum.
Given Brown’s track record, particularly the hugely impressive Showman, audiences may feel understandably disappointed by Only Human. It’s not just the disconnected narrative that disappoints, but the sense that many of the illusions themselves never quite reach the astonishing heights we have come to expect. Then again, knowing Brown’s form, perhaps that’s the final trick: a reminder that even master illusionists are, after all, only human.
Listings and ticket information can be found here
