We round up the reviews for this stage adaptation of Eddie Jaku’s memoirs.
Broadway World: ***** “It’s deservedly uncomfortable and gut-wrenching. It might be built like a gripping historical thriller, but the knowledge that what you’re seeing is all real is hair-raising. St Germain’s writing flows easily, conjuring precise images and transporting us through time and cruelty. His use of language is intriguing in its specific political slant, fully aware of the implications of employing terms like ‘refugees’, for example. It adds a further layer of nuance.”
All That Dazzles: ***** “All of this to say that I loved this production. Everything about it worked, and worked together in service of the story which is, in my book, what makes great theatre. At the beginning of the play, Eddie has a question – should he tell his story? Will the audience be able to bear hearing it? Can he bear to tell it? He answers his own question in the end, but I’d already answered it many times over while watching this play.”
London Theatre 1: ***** “The ninety-minute running time felt considerably less than that – always a good sign – and the intense, no-holds-barred approach felt appropriate for this harrowing account. Unflinching and uncompromising, the appreciation of the gift of life was affirming and reassuring.”
Theatre & Tonic: **** “As a whole, The Happiest Man on Earth is an inspiring piece that I think the real Eddie Jaku would be proud of. It is heartfelt and harrowing. It makes you want to be a better person, tell your parents you love them and go out and purchase the novel so you can learn more about him.”
The Jewish Chronicle: **** “With the play arriving at a time when language has been distorted beyond recognition there may be some in the audience who discover what the word genocide actually means.”
The Reviews Hub: ***** “The Happiest Man on Earth is an exquisite monologue that captures the beauty of the human spirit and one man’s resilience when the world he knew appeared to have lost theirs. You would be forgiven, given the source material, for thinking the title was a misnomer, but the last ten minutes of the monologue presents Jaku’s remarkable strength as he tries to find his identity in a post-Holocaust world, leaving the stage in a moment of poignancy.”
Theatre Weekly: ** “Basically, the play is a faithful recounting of the book in chronological order, following Jaku’s life journey from his happy childhood in Germany through the rise of the Nazi regime, his experiences in the camps, his survival and liberation, and a nibble of his post-war life. There is little structural or dramaturgical innovation of the narrative that could better interweave his post-war loving happiness with his tumultuous past in Europe.”
London Theatre Reviews.co.uk: *** ” While Tigar is greatly compelling to capture our interest, the narrative is dense with Jaku’s experiences, feeling at times like a vacuum, as our energy is bounced from wall to wall in the atrocities that seem to have no light at the end of a continuous tunnel.”
Reviews Gate.co.uk: **** ” Arguably the play has found its ideal home. Although it is a story about horrors it is also one about survival, about a man who went on to become – as he claimed – not just happy, but possibly the happiest man alive. Holocaust stories have been told many times and can never be told too often. Eddie.s story, inspiring, moving and perfectly told by Tiger, is one that deserves to be read, watched and heeded.”
The Spy in the Stalls: ***** “Lagomarsino’s direction is also brilliant, complimenting Tigar consistently. Stage design (James Noone) and sound design (Brendan Aanes) were simple and sparse, but expertly curated, seamlessly adding to the fabric of the piece.”
First Night Magazine: ***** “. Just like its protagonist, The Happiest Man On Earth is a piece bound to survive – not only in the scene, but in the hearts of everyone who comes watch it. Poignant and enchanting, the originality that’s been brought upon to a topic none is unfamiliar with, but still feels like a new discovery thanks to its authenticity, makes of it one of the finest offers in the London scene during the Autumn – as well as a gentle reminder of the significance of our paths. Life may not be just. But our actions can sometimes change its mind.”
Adventures in Theatreland: ***** “The Happiest Man on Earth is not an easy watch by any means, and will leave audiences in floods of tears from the painful recollection, but nevertheless is a show that is incredibly important. The hard earned knowledge and powerful message Eddie chooses to inform audiences is worth every tear shed, and one owes it to themselves to learn from this show.”
The Happiest Man on Earth continues to play at the Southwark Playhouse until the 14th December.