The expression “What the Dickens?” is perhaps the most apt response to dance-theatre company Lost Dog’s take on the Victorian author’s classic novel, which, according to the marketing blurb, is pitched more at those unfamiliar with the source material than those that are.

“If you’ve never read Charles Dickens’ novel … then this is the show for you. If you have read it, this might also be the show for you, depending on how well you remember it” goes the spiel, but in truth it’s pretty hard work regardless of which camp you’re in. The abstract, non-linear approach this reimagining takes to the narrative makes it virtually unintelligible to the layman, and those familiar with the story will struggle to put the scattered pieces of the jigsaw together given how much they’ve been scattered.

The all-new production, premiering at Warwick Arts Centre before touring to London and Paris among other destinations, focuses on Lucie Manette, who is also trying to piece a story together – namely of how her parents escaped Paris at the height of the French Revolution. There’s also a half-remembered traumatic episode in her childhood she needs an explanation for, and the play uses the device of a filmed documentary and interviews with key family members to help her, and the audience, understand what happened.

At first this works well, creating a nice dynamic between the excitable Lucie (although Nina-Morgane Madelaine was initially prone to speaking at breakneck speed) and the audience, who she regularly addresses, but before long that dialogue – as well as the camera/interview format – becomes less of a factor as the production goes off on a range of tangents. Some of it succeeds – a couple of dance/movement, elements serve the drama well – but too often the lack of cohesion made these feel like individual set-pieces rather than part of a structured whole. And keeping up with it all wasn’t helped by apparent issues with the sound balance, as some actors (John Kendall) were far easier to hear than others (Valentina Formenti).

In his programme notes, director Ben Duke, who has previously reworked Paradise Lost and Juliet & Romeo, admits his “squashing of Dickens’ 12-hour novel into a 90-minute stage show… seemed like a good idea at the time”, and as much as this adaptation contains some nice sequences and uniformly strong performances from a talented five-strong cast, that good idea sadly hasn’t translated to a particularly good play.

Three Stars

Lost Dog A Tale of Two Cities was reviewed by Steve Adams at Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry on Thursday 17 February.