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Life upon the wicked stage: Already Perfect at Kings Head Theatre

Production image by Pamela Raith Photography

Performing two shows a day on a Broadway run sounds exhausting enough. But when you’ve just had a not-so-great matinee and are having a crisis of confidence, I would assume the last thing you’d want is to confront your past. Yet that’s the situation in Already Perfect, writer-performer Levi Kreis’s slightly autobiographical journey of confronting the past and his younger self. With a series of toe-tapping and emotional songs in a sleek production, you’re invited to experience someone else’s therapy session. And with a show title called Already Perfect, you know what kind of session this is going to be. It makes for a show where nothing is left unsaid, even if it is unnecessary,  unbelievable or best left on a greeting card. It’s currently playing at the King’s Head Theatre. 

The story begins in his dressing room after a matinee, with Kreis alone. The show didn’t go so well. Struggling after being dumped by a lover, pressure mounting on the evening show being filmed for posterity, and thinking of ending it all, he is spiralling. His sponsor, Ben (Yiftach ‘Iffy’ Mizrahi), arrives and encourages Levi to channel his feelings into music and reconnect with his inner self. This leads to the younger, cockier Matthew (Killian Thomas Lefevre) emerging from the dressing room walls. Together, Levi and Matthew confront adolescent memories of conversion therapy, rejection, gospel music, followed by his early adult years of drugs, addiction, and casual sex. 

Production image by Pamela Raith Photography

Kreis’s life seems to have enough material for several musicals as the three performers move through a variety of characters and villains in his life. His talent and vocal range are never in doubt, making his emotionally charged songwriting even more compelling. As his younger self, Lefevre also brings a swagger and charm that’s hard to resist. When the songs get going, it transforms into a theatrical wonderland. Descending down to the depths of the King's Head Theatre, the place also looks gorgeous for a backstage dressing room (designed by Jason Ardizzone-West). 

But when the music stops, you might be left wondering where the drama is heading as things start to drag. Alternatively, you might get frustrated that they should get on with it. Perhaps more songs and theatrical magic would tell the life of a musical theatre star better than mere words. And a bigger band could give it the fuller sound it deserves. 

Directed by Dave Solomon (who also provided additional book material), Already Perfect continues at the King's Head Theatre until 15 February. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Production image by Pamela Raith Photography

Production images: Pamela Raith Photography


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