Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Guest Reviewer: Daniel Shipman
Death Drop 2: Back in the Habit is billed as a sequel to the hit drag whodunnit, but this is actually something of a misnomer. There are no recurring characters or plot points. Instead, we find ourselves inside a monastery, accompanied by an appropriate number of Sound of Music references. (ie, lots.) What HAS been carried over from the original however is the ultra-camp sense of humour, and enough innuendo to make the cast of a Carry On film blush.
Father Alfie Romeo (Louis Cyfer) is dispatched to the convent of St Babs, in search of a holy ring. (Spoiler: this ring belonged to Jesus Christ himself… and it wasn’t a piece of jewellery.) If that seems like vulgar humour, then this is not the show for you. If you can get on board with it, then grab yourself a ticket and brace your funny bone.
Jujubee’s status as the biggest star of the show is somewhat wasted by limited stage time, but she certainly makes the most of her appearances as Sister Maria Julie Andrews. The physical comedy between her and Alfie Romeo in a number of corridor-running scenes is top-tier.
The hammy accents deployed by the entire cast have strong comedic value, but they do overwhelm the actual dialogue at times, leading to a few of the jokes being missed. Similarly, the stars could have used a bit more precision with their comic timing – yet more jokes are lost by a cast that routinely launches straight into the next line when the audience isn’t yet finished laughing at the previous one, something which should be a pretty innate skill for performers of this level. In other shows, this would have a terminal effect on the comedy, but the script (penned by Louis Cyfer) keeps the humour coming so consistently that it is (at least partially) forgivable.
Dropped gags aside, there are some excellent performances here – Victoria Scone and Kitty Scott-Claus prove themselves to be masterful scene partners. Scone with a camp melodrama which suits her role perfectly, and Scott-Claus with a down-to-earth frankness which proves the perfect foil and ensures that the tone is sufficiently varied throughout.
If an evening full of double-entendre is your idea of fun, then you’ll find a lot to love in Death Drop 2.
-Daniel Shipman
Death Drop – Back In The Habit runs at Manchester Opera House until 12 March 2023 and then Birmingham Hippodrome from 14-18 March 2023.