In a fun re-imaging of a nostalgic children’s favourite – Murder on the Magic School Bus is precisely what it makes out to be, promising just under an hour of laughs, twists and schoolyard drama.
In what could best be summarised as ‘The Breakfast Club’ meets a murder mystery, the show follows a class excursion to a crime scene-turned-disaster with the group left to resolve the death of one of their own.
Kate O’Sullivan is at the helm as the iconic Miss Frizzle, confidently leading pupils through a masterclass in criminology with great gusto.
The student pool is rounded out by the distinct archetypes of a typical school environment – a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess and a criminal – if you will.
Clare Boon earns a lot of laughs as ‘miss popular’ Lexi, bouncing well off Jasmine Ward’s brooding Ash. The pair share great chemistry with a fun, albeit unexplored, enemies to lovers type side plot.
Dominic Depiazzi shines as brainiac Jamie – commanding the stage with his strong presence. While Genevieve Wilson and Sarah-Beth Aldridge nicely round out the group as the sporty Sam and quiet Charlie respectively.
Callum Fairweather provides a good neutral ground among the smorgasbord of personalities, offering frank narration as victim Xavier.
While good use of the stage was made, with some particularly enjoyable ‘appearing’ props, blocking sometimes felt repetitive and lineal. The pacing could also be improved (though this could have been opening night jitters), with actors often interjecting one another in a bid to keep up with the quick-fire dialogue.
Props, however, must go to the cast for seamlessly adapting to the night’s chosen killer, in what appears to be open-ended every night, offering the right dose of audience interaction whilst still leaving enough to the imagination to bring keen audience members back for more.
Overall, this production is a fun concept, with sturdy foundations that I’d love to see further fleshed out, but nevertheless makes for an enjoyable night out to see some promising local talent take the stage.