Review: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – A West End Triumph of Storytelling and Stagecraft

The West End adaptation of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is nothing short of extraordinary — a spellbinding piece of musical theatre that brims with heart, innovation, and emotional depth. Based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s timeless short story, this reimagining transports the narrative to the rugged coast of Cornwall, weaving folk-infused melodies and rich storytelling into a theatrical experience that lingers long after the curtain falls.

A Mesmerizing Lead Performance

At the heart of the production is an utterly captivating performance by Benedict Salter as Benjamin Button. Salter navigates Benjamin’s backwards life — from aged infancy to youthful demise — with profound sensitivity and astonishing physicality. His transitions through time are seamless, conveying innocence, wisdom, confusion, and acceptance, often within a single scene. It’s a performance that demands versatility and emotional truth, and Salter delivers with finesse and soul.

A Cast That Sings With One Voice

The ensemble is equally outstanding. Each actor morphs effortlessly between characters, taking up instruments, narrating segments, and building the world around Benjamin with an almost magical cohesion. Clare Foster, as Elowen, Benjamin’s great love, brings fierce warmth and aching vulnerability to her role. Their chemistry is beautifully rendered, their shared scenes glowing with poignancy and quiet power.

Innovative Staging and Folk-Rich Score

The direction by Jethro Compton is ingenious — minimalist in design, yet bursting with imagination. Wooden crates become beds, boats, and battlegrounds. Lighting shifts like passing clouds, subtly marking the passage of time. Coupled with the deeply emotive, sea-salted score by Darren Clark, which blends Cornish folk rhythms with sweeping ballads, the musical numbers flow organically from the story. The music is not just an accompaniment, but a living, breathing character in itself.

Highlights include “The World Turns Upside Down,” a haunting ballad of loss and change, and “Time and Tide,” a choral number so stirring it silenced the audience into awed stillness before erupting in applause.

Emotional Resonance That Endures

What makes Benjamin Button soar is its emotional honesty. It explores love, identity, mortality, and the beauty of fleeting moments without sentimentality. The production respects the intelligence of its audience, trusting them to sit with sadness and joy, sometimes both at once. The final scenes are devastating in their quiet simplicity — no theatrics, just truth — and they leave a lasting ache that feels oddly comforting.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button on the West End is a rare gem — original, heartfelt, and richly imaginative. It’s a show that doesn’t just entertain but moves, challenges, and uplifts. With its outstanding performances, poetic direction, and breathtaking score, this is a theatrical experience not to be missed.

★★★★★ – A masterwork of modern British theatre.

Words by Sal F.