Four-star reviews for Julian Felice’s ‘deliciously cynical’ The Blue Whale

Local playwright Julian Felice’s play “The Blue Whale”, performed by Dramatis Personae, has received positive reviews from the theatre press following its recent run at The Space.

Writing for The Reviews Hub, reviewer John Cutler commended the play’s “mischievous” and “deliciously cynical humour” while Chris Omaweng from London Theatre described the piece as “rarely comfortable viewing” and “gritty and engaging in its approach to the contemporary issues it tackles”.

For her part, Carly Nicklin (the Adventures In Theatreland blog) commented that she was “left paralysed in shock with where the story ended.”

Ms Nicklin also highlighted the “real genuineness” of Chris Ablitt’s performance as Karl, whilst The Reviews Hub remarked on “a delectably malign Natalie Bonavia” in her role as Tasha.

Sam Bush was also praised for playing Lewis “with such gullible, trusting charm that it is easy to feel sorry for the young man as he spirals from weird selfies to public humiliation, and worse.”

Comments and feedback from audience members and the staff at The Space were also very positive, with even a comment on Emma Cruz’s lighting setup and its “effortless split-stage blackouts.”

This was the first time that a play written by a Gibraltarian has ever been performed in a London theatre by a Gibraltarian company, and the performance received four stars from London Theatre and Adventures In Theatreland, as well as three-and-a-half stars from The Reviews Hub.

The play was watched by over two hundred people over three days, both in person and online, including Minister for Culture Dr John Cortes, UK Representative Dominique Searle, and members of the Friends of Gibraltar Heritage Society, as well as many Gibraltarians living in the London area.

A video recording of the production is now available on demand via The Space’s website until the March 13.