That Bastard, Puccini! ★★ Park Theatre | Jul 10 - Aug 9, 2025


That Bastard, Puccini! recounts the rivalry between the composer Ruggero Leoncavallo, best known for his opera, Pagliacci, and his more famous contemporary, Giacomo Puccini. While the story centres around their competing productions of operas based on Henri Murger's Scènes de la vie de bohème, it also wanders over other various points of contention between the two. Unfortunately, both of the major characters are presented as caricatures. Alasdair Buchan's Leoncavallo is simply an aggrieved blowhard, whereas Sebastien Torkia's Puccini is depicted as a condescending womaniser. One never really cares much about either composer, their motivations or their disagreements. The show is also littered with anachronisms, some intentionally introduced for humour, and others apparently quite unintended. The cast, particularly Lisa-Anne Wood, who plays Leoncavallo's wife, Berthe, also take on various other characters. Wood becomes Puccini's spouse, Elvira, and his publisher/producer, Ricordi. Torkia likewise does a parodic version of Gustav Mahler at a couple of points. This is all undertaken with frequent, heavy-handed breaking of the fourth wall and the now de rigueur meta references which add nothing to the drama. As with many historical pieces, a major issue becomes how to introduce information without the work seeming like an animated Wikipedia article. That Bastard, Puccini! doesn't always manage that challenge very well. Facts are often introduced in a not very natural manner, and sometimes material which is historically interesting, but dramatically irrelevant, seems shovelled in. It is certainly possible to write a fascinating and insightful work about the personalities and rivalry of two musical geniuses. One needs only remember Peter Shaffer's Amadeus. However, while Shaffer's treatment of this theme remains as unforgettable as Puccini's La Bohème, That Bastard, Puccini! seems destined to go the way of Leoncavallo's version of the same story.

Rated: ★★

Reviewed by J.C.
Photo by David Monteith-Hodge

When, Where, Getting there:
Map & Location: 13 Clifton Terrace, Finsbury Park, London N4 3JP, UK

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