It’s the distant future. Underground, in a ‘bunker’ hidden far from the prying eyes of ‘the government’ (below Tottenham Court Road), there is a community of misfits and survivors. People who don’t fit into the perceived ‘perfection’ of the fascist world above. A world where the only parts of our society to survive are reality TV, and the complete works of Oscar Wilde. Yeah, it’s certainly a weird concept… but in Oscar at the Crown, the ‘Dystopian Dance Party Musical’, the back story is really not all that important. What’s important is the experience.
Walking down the stairs, past the wall of martyrs (a collage of names and images displayed of musicians and actors both alive and dead), we entered the bunker. There are old TVs piled up and transmitting grainy footage from CCTV cams all around us, there is a section of a London Underground train that has been cut out and turned into a really cool set of booths to sit in and chill, drink, the lighting is soft and colourful. There’s a small stage at one end of the space, and in the centre, some of the staging can be unlocked and moved around when required. And did I mention the beautiful people dancing on the stage during the pre-show? Be sure to get there in plenty of time!
The post-apocalyptic vibes are strong and Abby Clarke’s set and lighting design nails the bunker aesthetic. But this isn’t some grim dystopian drama. It’s a glitter-drenched fever dream of a show, billed as immersive – and yes, it sort of is, but not in a Secret Cinema or Bridge Command kind of way. You’re not influencing the narrative or forging alternate plotlines. Instead, the immersion comes from the world itself – from the fact that it’s happening all around you, performers moving through the standing audience, climbing onto platforms, and literally shifting the staging around you as the show unfolds.
What plays out is 80 or so minutes of queer anarchy, high camp, and pounding pop – the narrative is deeply confusing and borderline impossible to follow, but that didn’t ruin our enjoyment. The show sort of pretends to be telling the life story of Oscar Wilde, except Oscar isn’t quite Oscar, and half the time it’s not even about him – it’s about celebrity, about reality TV, about banishment and exile, and yes, at one point, it’s about Julie Cooper from The OC. Seriously. There’s an entire song dedicated to her called ‘Julie, How Did You Know?’ and I still don’t know what it meant, but I loved every second. ‘Praise Julie’!
The show began life as a concept album created by Mark Mauriello (who also stars) and Andrew Barret Cox back in 2019, and it’s built up a devoted cult following since then. That’s very much apparent in the crowd – this is not your average audience. There were people singing along to some of the numbers, properly belting them out like they were at a gig. And honestly, that energy is exactly what this show feeds on.
Mauriello is electric as Oscar – seductive, dangerous, wounded and worshipped. He’s also co-creator of the whole wild(e) show, and clearly still loving every minute of being back in the sequins. His Oscar is something of an unhinged control freak, and Mauriello played this to a T, giving some serious bunny boiler vibes when disagreed with! The whole cast and ensemble are fabulous, to be fair – every single one of them radiates commitment, queer joy, and utter chaotic brilliance. Every performer commits 200%, throwing themselves into each number like their lives depend on it. And then there’s Elizabeth Chalmers as Constance/Kim. She says little for most of the show, just observing, unsure of her place in this new community. But when she finally steps forward and sings the final number – ‘A Glimmer of Light’ – she blows the roof off so hard I think the whole of the West End must have felt it.
Oh, I have to mention the cocktails! Served in disco ball goblets, they were perfectly on theme. I don’t even care what was in mine, I was sold the second it arrived, and it was scrummy too.
There are so many moments I want to mention – the absolutely unhinged The OC and Real Housewives worship, the chaotic energy of it all, the moments when the crowd and cast blur together and it just becomes something else. And even when it’s completely mad and I didn’t even know which way to look, it somehow still works. That’s the point. It’s messy, loud, a little broken, and utterly fabulous – just like the characters, and most of us in the audience!
Even when the show ends, it doesn’t really end. The music keeps playing, the cast comes down to party with the crowd, and the bunker turns into a club night. It was the most fun I’ve had at a musical in years!
This isn’t a show for the faint of heart or the linear of thought. It’s a chaotic, euphoric and superbly queer celebration of everything that doesn’t fit into polite society. It’s about being too much. It’s about surviving the end of the world in thigh-high boots and body glitter. It’s about Oscar Wilde, maybe. But more than that, it’s about all of us.
Go. Drink the disco cocktails. Lose your mind a little. Surrender to the glitter. Just go Wilde!
Oscar At The Crown is playing at their exclusive underground bunker at 213-215 Tottenham Ct Rd. Book your tickets now from theatreticketsdirect.co.uk
Words by Nick Barr
Photography Luke Dyson
