The Mongol Khan - Production value over production quality

The Mongol Khan, London Coliseum, 17.11 - 02.12.2023, watched on 20 November (gala night). Produced by Hero Entertainment, Director Hero Bataar

It's not fair, from my position, to be reviewing theatre. For better and for worse, and to my surprise, I am a director of a theatre in London, so it feels out of place to be commenting on other theatres' productions.

I am, however, completely unlikely to ever do anything of the scale of The Mongol Khan in my life, so I suppose I can get a pass this time. The play, one of the most talked about in London at the moment, is very well-reviewed, so this isn't a review as much as it's a series of clarifying thoughts whose intended readership is a short series of future me-s rather than anyone else. And besides, I got to see this show on a press ticket, so this feels like a bit of giving back.

Ever since I saw the posters, this show piqued my curiosity. I wanted to see it, and I have Zuza to thank for seeing it for free. Was it what I expected? Well... I don't know. I tried to go in without expectations, but you are encouraged to think 'lavish' when you are greeted outside of the theatre by actors in medieval Mongolian attire either on horses or holding flags.

What, you thought I was kidding?

It is a lavish production, this much is clear. They went for the spectacle and they do provide: 70 people on stage and a costume department that must've been bigger than most production teams I work with. But where the director got it wrong, and where the lack of stars throughout the reviews must stem from, is watering down a story that feels it has quite a lot of complexity, even if not a lot of innovation. What we are seeing on stage is a lot less than what the original play seems to be. It's a showcase of costumes first and foremost and the plot is not a lot more intricate than that of a fashion show.

I say it a lot, audiences are usually smarter than we give them credit for, and if the director had given his English audience a bit more credit to understand a story where basic human impulses are superseded by various inherited patterns of thought, where the duty to society supersedes the love of family, this might've been a better show. As it is, all of the themes are merely hinted at, all of the characters are underdeveloped, and audiences are right to complain about the pace and the looseness of the plot.

Of course, the show doesn't owe us anything, but by the same token, we're in no way forced to like it, however beautiful and carefully researched the costumes might be. It feels almost like a convention has not been agreed between the show and the audience. For this reason, spectacular as it might be, The Mongol Khan feels like a missed opportunity.

Though I for one, would be curious to read the original play in full.

Are you not entertained?