The Life I Lead

The life I lead is a superb play, a lovely mix of utterly hilarious and serious. The play brings life to the actor David Tomlinson who plays Mr Banks, from Mary Poppins, from his childhood to his complex relationships and him bringing up his own children.

The play starts fairly humorously but throughout goes into complex themes like the love, mental illness and the deaths that Mr Tomlinson has to deal with. It also looks into the mistakes of his father whom he had never been close to and how he uses that to bring to life Mr Banks under the guidance of Walt Disney.

The set was simple yet effective, it remained a constant through the play. It was just a drawing room, and in the beginning, the butt of a few jokes, but as Mr Tomlinson explains, it is where the most happens in a home.
Music itself plays a smaller part of the play, just a small piece here and there to add effect as well as a small musical piece on being a gentleman

I was initially sceptical of it being a 1 man performance, but I was immediately put at ease with the exceptional performance of Miles Jupp. He brought life to an actor we have all seen at some point, from his fondest memories to his deepest pains, whilst still making us laugh the majority of the time. I particularly enjoyed the comparisons between the UK and the USA. For example how British people act abroad or the culture of being particularly uptight. A funny reaction on how culture rarely changes.

Overall, the play is great, tackling a range of issues and themes while simultaneously being fairly light and quite comedic. It's a series of crazy adventures and anecdotes the Miles Jupp expertly guides you through as David Tomlinson, leaving you wanting more stories and even more laughs.

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