Dogging In Deutschland: The Dog Beneath The Skin At Jermyn Street Theatre

The Dog Beneath the Skin, Jermyn Street Theatre ★★★★☆

By Johnny Fox Last edited 72 months ago

Looks like this article is a bit old. Be aware that information may have changed since it was published.

Dogging In Deutschland: The Dog Beneath The Skin At Jermyn Street Theatre The Dog Beneath the Skin, Jermyn Street Theatre 4
Photo: Sam Taylor (S R Taylor Photography)

Try for a moment to imagine what might have happened if celebrated poet W H Auden and Berlin-based conceiver of Cabaret’s Sally Bowles Christopher Isherwood had together written The League of Gentlemen.  Now imagine they did it in rhyme, and you might begin to see where Proud Haddock are heading with The Dog Beneath the Skin.

In the sleepy German dorf of Pressan Ambo, while Deutschland sleepwalks its way to disaster in the early 1930s, uneasy magical realism and cosy amber-lit domesticity provide a backdrop to an odd tale of a competition to find a husband for the village heiress. Local women for local people.

Photo: Sam Taylor (S R Taylor Photography)

The man appointed to the quest (Pete Ashmore) pursues it in company of an anthropoid dog, winningly portrayed by Cressida Bonas while everyone else covers a multitude of characters, and the script is delivered in often comical lyric verse.

It’s like nothing else you’ll see in London at the moment, and as a piece of vintage theatre, as well as vintage poetry, may well be worth a look.

Bonas is Prince Harry’s former squeeze — wonder if Meghan Markle’s been to see it?

The Dog Beneath the Skin, Jermyn Street Theatre, W1.  Until 31 March 2018. Tickets £30 (concessions £20).

Last Updated 13 March 2018