Naima Khan reviews Utopia at Soho Theatre, a rather easy take on perfection embodied in one flawed attempt at Zumba.
Turns out David Whittaker is the only person in the world who can make Zumba seem appealing to me. In Utopia he gives it all he's got, gets everything wrong and shrugs at his failings, which is the pattern of the search for perfection he undertakes with five other cast members in Steve Marimon and Max Roberts' devised production. But like David's role in this odd, funny scene, much of this show, though often excellent and completely hilarious, it is too simple.
Marimon and Roberts take six nameless clowns and get them to look into theories of utopia from Plato to Hitler via Marx and Goebbels, with little intellectual middle-ground in between. But their journey does take them in some potentially brilliant directions with the help of numerous writers including Simon Stephens, Dylan Moran and Janice Okoh. Alastair McDowall's Propaganda is one such route. It sees a dictator (David being fantastic again) shattered to find that Jay-Z has expressed his like for him via the power of Facebook in a sketch that is hair-raising in its brutal imagery and delightfully ridiculous in subverting expectations.
However, as the dictator sees the errors of his way thanks to the masses, you can't help but feel this is all too easy. Not the gags, but the message. What we're invited to reflect on has already reached a commonly accepted conclusion which they do little to challenge. It's demonstrated by the final scene which reveals the shows poorly hidden warm, gooey centre, which I quite like it. In this scene we see Pamela Miles play a retired Labour politician now blind and confined to a retirement home. With the help of her earnest, ambitious carer she comes to realise she still has more to give and should continue to appreciate the little things in life etc. Sweet but obvious.
But this show does have the potential to really stand apart. It celebrates its own journey, now all it needs is to celebrate its performers. We see so much of the performer in Utopia that the Beckett clown thing loses its relevance quickly. Yes they falter entertainingly as they search for an amazing feat but what's more interesting is their own personal take on that feat. Here Rufus Hound (in his theatrical debut) is amused by it, Pamela Miles is wise to it, David Whittaker is taking no fools, while Laura Elphinstone is heartbreakingly sincere. Tobi Bakare is the one performer who (disappointingly) disappears behind his white mask and Sophia Myles seems bored as hell. They could all do with less repetition in their performance and more conviction in their script. This show is genuinely funny but could do with taking itself less seriously. 
Utopia runs at Soho Theatre until 14th July
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