Marvellous – New Vic Theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme

Writer: Neil Baldwin & Malcolm Clarke

Adaptor: Theresa Heskins & Neil Baldwin

Director: Theresa Heskins

After several false starts over the last couple of years, the New Vic Theatre in Newcastle-under-Lyme has finally managed to stage a show about one of Stoke’s most treasured natives. The story of Neil ‘Nello’ Baldwin was previously told by Peter Bowker in the BAFTA award-winning 2014 film Marvellous, attracting huge critical acclaim for its voicing of inclusion, community and positivity as well as praise for Toby Jones’ wonderful portrayal of Neil. Now, artistic director Theresa Heskins has adapted his life story for the stage in a delightfully oddball way – fitting for the subject matter of Nello himself.

Outside the North Midlands you would be forgiven for Neil Baldwin’s name not to immediately chime but within Staffordshire and the surrounds his name is that of local legend. Known primarily as the infamous kit man and football mascot for Stoke City Football Club, his life story proves much more than that of washing socks and cheering goals dressed in ridiculous costumes. A stint in a dog collar and several years as Nello the clown in circus troupes are just some of the colours melded into his kaleidoscopic years. But it is Nello’s simplistic mantra of positivity that is the real story behind his status as regional marvel. It is impossible to think of any other perfect casting for Neil too in Michael Hugo. In countless productions at The New Vic over the last twenty years Hugo himself has cemented himself a certain level of local legend status and his central performance is as integral as the writing itself.

Theresa Heskins’ adaptation is possibly best described as a show once removed – a meta version of itself. The set-up is that of a troupe of actors multi-rolling their way through his biography, each taking it in turn to play the man himself. That is, until the ‘real’ Neil (Michael Hugo) interjects from the audience and fashions his life story his way. The result is a conscious narrative whereby Hugo becomes narrator, director, storyteller, actor, audience member and cupboard! It is a wonderfully fun and slightly chaotic way to tell this story of inclusivity. Heskins’ creates a workshop feel narrative as if the play is being constructed before our very eyes. At times there are nods to documentary and verbatim styles of theatre so rich in the New Vic’s blood from Peter Cheeseman.

The concept of the actors playing themselves works in the main. Of course, it is an impossible dream to achieve as the very nature of performance equates to a heightened version of oneself. Heskins cleverly uses the actors’ real names as they fall in and out of characters from Neil’s life, manipulated almost like marionette puppets from the mastermind who has hijacked the ‘show’. Gareth Cassidy, in particular, is put through his paces conjuring characters, accents and impressions that may or may not be within his remit! It is an enjoyable premise that opens up the fourth wall to the audience but occasionally dabbles into a dangerous falsehood of ‘rehearsed spontaneity’.

Baldwin’s life is given deeper gravitas in the second half as Heskins ingeniously (and almost unnoticeably) slips Hugo into the title role as oppose to the other actors playing their versions of him. The focus shifts to the relationship between him and his mother (beautifully played by Suzanne Ahmet) who is trying to prepare him for a life no longer under her wing once she is gone. The style of the piece lurches wildly from sentimentality to slapstick and the absurd – with a pantomimic slop scene, as she attempts to teach him how to cook, thrown in for good measure.

At a time where it is difficult to see any positivity or optimism through the slurry of rolling news channels, Marvellous is the perfect antidote. Theatre so often holds up a lens to how we live our lives and Baldwin’s unwavering desire to be happy and make those around him happy becomes the real star of this show. It is a simple message that, in reality, is hard to execute but one leaves the theatre with renewed vigour to try and make everything in your life and your circle as marvellous as you can possibly make it.

Runs until 9^th April 2022