Freya Catrin Smith and Jack Williams’ new musical not only chronicles her extraordinary achievement but also uncovers her deception. On a set depicting a Victorian library, it takes you by surprise at every turn.
The cast of two – Liv Andrusier’s Annie and Yuki Sutton as a secretary – are a superb double act.
As a real-life feminist riposte to Phileas Fogg, Annie bets she can ride across the globe on a bicycle in under 15 months.
En route, it becomes increasingly apparent that she is not who she claims to be and that her abrasive personality conceals a more vulnerable creature beneath.
The descriptive songs are lyrically adroit and Andrusier and Sutton deliver them with power, skill and character.
The strong script slips easily between humour, drama and romance, the staging and lighting is inventive and the songs reflect Annie’s escapades with tuneful assurance.
Get on your bike and go.
- Ride, Charing Cross Theatre until September 17 Tickets: 08444 930 650
