Oh Zeus! at Lowry

Three actors playing 40 characters. It’s an outlandish proposition. But for John Nicholson, the Olivier-nominated writer-director behind Oh Zeus!, it’s almost a signature at this point. He’s been refining this exact brand of quick-change mayhem since co-writing The Hound of the Baskervilles for Peepolykus back in 2007. Nearly two decades on, Oh Zeus! applies the same machinery to Mount Olympus, in a mythical farce that takes us to Ancient Greece, the Underworld and back.

The plot: Zeus’s daughter Hebe wants to marry Gregg, a hotel manager who happens to be entirely mortal. Her father will not have it. What follows drags gods, monsters and one unlucky audience member from a shabby Greek hotel down into the underworld, with Al Dunn, Nick Bunt and Matt Freeman – who formed Exeter physical comedy troupe Le Navet Bete in 2008 – cycling through the cast at a pace that has become the company’s selling point. No surprise, given every one of their biggest hits was written by John Nicholson himself.

Dracula: The Bloody Truth, King Arthur and Treasure Island have built Le Navet Bete a reputation as one of the UK’s most-loved comedy theatre companies – “kings of comedy,” if they do say so themselves. Oh Zeus! is apparently their most ambitious outing yet – a claim backed up by glittering reviews. One critic called it “classic Le Navet Bete, but on steroids”; another singled out Matt Freeman’s scene-stealing Hera, all shades and attitude, as an instant icon. The show was meant to wind down this autumn – instead it has been extended into 2027, which says a lot about how it’s landing.

At Lowry, expect airtight chaotic physical comedy, outrageous jokes and a punishing rate of costume changes. It carries a 12+ age guide and a warning that – as you’d very much hope – things occasionally stray from being family-friendly.