Metamorphosis Review 

On the 7th February as part of a school Drama trip we travelled to the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith, which started running on the 1st February and is ending on the 2nd March. The production is an adaptation of Franz Kafka’s metamorphosis adapted by Lemn Sissay and directed by Scott Graham, the artistic director of Frantic Assembly. 

The physical theatre part to the production by Frantic Assembly created a captivating performance that had me engaged for the entire show. The production was amazing the entire way through, even from the very beginning when a montage of projections were projected onto the back wall of the stage with a mantra held by each character. This immediately drew me in as an audience member as the projections began to slowly speed up and flick through all the mantras, which made it feel like the beginning of an old movie. 

Felipe Pacheo who played Gregor Samsa showed off an extraordinary physical strength after his transformation from human to verminous bug by using props such as a ceiling light that could be pulled down from the top of the stage and Felipe Pacheo used this ceiling light to swing around the room and present through his movements that his transformation was now irreversible. The use of props were extremely useful in presenting the change in his character. 

The production was spectacular on all levels from the amazing visual set design, incredible acting by cast members, the use of lighting and sound and finally the use of props and special effects. I would definitely recommend watching the Frantic Assembly’s production of Metamorphosis before it leaves the lyric theatre on the 2nd March as it was an incredible piece of modern theatre.