UNITED QUEENDOM

A review by Tanya Howard

An English mistress. A foreign queen. A difficult balance.
Roles chosen by their king, but women who chose not to be defined by them.

United Queendom is a brand-new immersive theatre show from Les Enfants Terribles, which tells the true story of two powerful women overlooked and forgotten as was the case for many women across the years. A smart and intelligent Queen, and a strong willed and zealous Lady.

The story is told within the gorgeous venue of Kensington Palace, which the two women once called home, the audience are taken on a journey to the past as we learn more about Queen Catherine and Lady Henrietta. Two women, two stories and two separate routes, you become a spectacular in their history and get the chance to find out what became of them both,

Henrietta was an orphan who lost everything after marrying a drunkard but ascended to be Lady of the Bedchamber, and Queen Catherine was attempting to change the fact of the court whilst presiding over her husband witch just the right amount of leadership and guidance.

This show had a lot of potential, from a stunning venue and a poignant and true story that draws you in with the intrigue of finding out more about the history of the Royals, but sadly it fell a little short. I think the storyline itself needed a little more sustenance and didn’t delve into the narrative as much as I would have liked.

I understand that being in a venue like Kensington Palace must put a bit of restraint on things but there were times when I was left wondering what the relevance of the scene was and was more interested in taking in the architectural beauty. As well as a stunning venue I was very impressed with the costumes which truly captured the time period and took you on a journey back in time.

I felt like I didn’t find out as much as I would have liked about Queen Caroline and Henriette and I would have like to see the detailing and information convey to be more in depth. The concept was there, they had a great base for this experience, but the delivery and plan unfortunately fell a little short.

Despite the storyline being focused on Queen Caroline and Henrietta, the court were more heavily featured and at times I questioned why. Why did we need to listen to the Duke arguing relentlessly at the salon, going with the classic if I shout louder I must be right, and why did every cast member have a different accent despite the time and location?

Although it sounds like I’m quite down on the experience I must go back to my initial comment about how the potential is there, that they have a basic concept, it just needs some padding and refining. The venue was just right, the cast were clearly giving it their all and were passionate in their roles and the costume and hair was on point.

Personally, I just needed a stronger storyline with clearer details on Queen Caroline and Henrietta, and not so much focus on some of the smaller parts like the singer for the King’s birthday party. Speaking of the singer though I did enjoy how they brought together the past and present through the art of song and spoken word rap.

The show is running until 30^th March and I’d be interested to see what Les Enfants Terribles decide to tackle next. I did enjoy the experience, just not to the high level that I expected, but I would say with a slightly stronger storyline, a little more information on the main characters and a little more drama during the more intense moments and you’ve got a big hit on your hands with United Queendom.