Stephen Sondheim’s satirical musical Assassins was premiered in 1990, taking place in a carnival setting where those who wanted to ‘shoot a president’ came together.
This production by SEDOS, their 14th of a Sondheim musical, and the 2nd of Assassins, goes full Americana, with flags handed out at the door and an auditorium festooned with stars and stripes.
We are at the Americon 2025 and ‘Take Your Shot’ is the slogan. The delegates (or game show contestants, they could be either) each have their own lecterns, names flashing up as they have their moment.
Even the programme continues the theme, with a chunk given over to the convention, with useful facts and figures about each ‘assassin’ and their targets.
Booth, Zangara, Czolgosz, Byck, Hinckley, Guiteau, Fromme, Moore, Oswald. Some names inevitably known more than others. Each given their own style of music and performance, from opera to vaudeville.
It’s pageantry with a dose of poison; psychosis with a nip of passion. Just a few days after the murder of conservative politician Charlie Kirk in a deeply unsettled 2025 America, this Assassins is uneasily contemporary, and SEDOS play into this with their ending.
The hosts (Anna Buckmaster and Chris Daniel Cahill) are all gleaming smiles and fake sincerity. There are cheerleaders and bystanders.
Oswald emerges when we least expect him. It’s all very tongue in cheek as each assassin gets their moment. Unhinged they may be, but unflinching in their purpose.
All the cast shine, but I want to mention a few in particular. Jake Dufton’s Czolgosz and his deep and strong vocals in ‘Gun Song’ (one of the best songs in the piece).
David Phipps-Davis’s Zangara, defiant and abrasive, from the electric chair set at the back of the stage.
The lively schtick of Sam Sugarman’s Charles Guiteau, as he smiles and dances through his trial, before a hesitation when he sees the gallows.
Rourke Puksand’s smooth and persuasive Booth, dapper, dry, and dangerous. And Jessica Dawes’s chatty Moore, America’s mother figure, with her ever-present handbag.
Director Dan Edge, musical director Matt Gould, and choreographer Emma Bowker capture all the nuances and tricks of Sondheim’s mockery.
These assassins think they are heroes, not just part of the problem when politics are corrosive and news is sceptical.
Now, with AI, deepfakes, and media propaganda, it is no surprise that we have had assassinations across the world.
Assassins may have the party atmosphere, but Sondheim’s lyrics and John Weidman’s book built enough momentum to make you think.
It’s easy to fire a gun, one of the songs informs us, goading, guiding, governing the action. But for what purpose?
Assassins has never been more relevant. This may be an amateur production, but SEDOS know their Sondheim and have pulled out all the stops.
4.5 stars.
Assassins is at Bridewell Theatre until 27 Sep – tickets here.
Image credit: David Ovenden