The Fit Prince
(Who Gets Switched On in the Square in the Frosty Castle the Night Before (Insert Public Holiday Here))
Given the amount of familiar faces that descended on The Kings Head Theatre for the sold out press night performance of THE FIT PRINCE (Who Gets Switched On in the Square in the Frosty Castle the Night Before (Insert Public Holiday Here)), this was clearly a greatly anticipated return to the London stage for Linus Karp and Joseph Martin, aka Awkward Productions. It’s hardly surprising coming as it does after the runaway successes of their previous shows How to Live a Jellicle Life, Diana - The Untold and Untrue Story, and Gwyneth Goes Skiing and, having personally been a longtime fan of Messrs’ Karp and Martin’s unique brand of humour, I, along with an audience awash with local queer talent from the various worlds of drag, comedy, tv and theatre, was excited to see this, their latest creation, the only question being could this fourth production continue such an unprecedented run of success.
Billed as ‘a joyous subversion of heteronormative romcoms’, and ‘a love letter to Karp’s native Sweden’, The Fit Prince is set in the completely fictitious, (but strangely familiar) country of Swedonia, and is as close as we have got so far to an Awkward Prods take on the traditional Christmas panto. That being said, far from limiting the shows potential to just a seasonal outing, the canny (and oh so very ‘Awkward’), inclusion of ‘(Insert Public Holiday Here)’ as part of the shows fully extended title means The Fit Prince can still be added to the production company’s canon of seemingly constant touring shows that can be performed anytime and anywhere, (as the successful summer run of this show at the Edinburgh Fringe has already proved). With this being a festive-season outing for The Fit Prince however, there are plenty of Pantomime-esque tropes to be found for anyone that cares to look. I.E. The story is a fairy tale… of sorts, there is audience participation, (more of which later), there is a villain in the form of the Fit Prince’s doppelgänger, and there is a hero… well actually there are two by the end of the night, which is exactly as it should be, all of which means we get a happy ending, but not before we are taken on a laugh-laden 70 minute journey full of queer joy and camp chaos in equal measure..
Surprisingly, the show starts with the ominous setting of a funeral. The King of Swedonia has died, and Prince Elian (Linus Karp) must marry within a limited time frame (that limit conveniently being Christmas Day on this occasion) else he must forfeit the crown. Having commissioned the cake before he has even found the groom, it would seem New York based baker, Aaron Butcher, (Joseph Martin), has the potential to be more than just a cake-maker when he is flown in to bake the Princes wedding cake… but will our two heroes be able to acknowledge their increasing attraction to each other in time!
Awkward Productions have proved themselves skilfully adept at putting some of the more dubious, culturally iconic moments of recent times through their uniquely chaotic blender of comedic lunacy and have managed to build an increasingly recognisable theatrical brand in the process where they are now even able to include throwback references to their own productions. The beautifully throwaway return of the life-size cardboard cut-out deer from Deer Valley, (that originally appeared in their 2023 production Gwyneth Goes Skiing), even got a cheer of recognition from the audience. This was not the only familiar aspect to tonight performance. There was also the return of their trademark video cameo’s, puppet characters, as well as the secret comedic weapon in their arsenal, audience participation, all elements that have now become synonymous with an Awkward production. Karp and Martin are clearly proponents of the old adage ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!’
There is however another adage that had sprang to mind by the end of tonight’s performance. Sometimes, ‘less is more’, specifically with regards to their greatly increased reliance on the video inserts this time around that are peppered throughout the show. Whilst they boast an impressive list of eight ‘digital cast cameo’s’, including contributions from RuPaul’s Drag Race UK alumni Yshee Black (as Michelle Obama) and Kate Butch (as Angela Merkle), actress and singer Geri Allen, (reprising her role as The Queen), grammy-nominated singer Tove Lo, (as the Prime Minister of Swedonia) and Hearstopper/Game Of Thrones actor Sebastian Croft (as Prince Balthazar), the frequency of these recurring video inserts left them feeling rather more intrusive than ‘value added’ this time around, interrupting the flow of what was already being hilariously generated on stage. There’s no denying its limited use in previous productions had worked well but here the device, by dint of its frequency, felt decidedly more bloated with at least some of these parts probably being better served by being allocated to audience members and keeping things on stage, unrehearsed and just as importantly, live.
With regards to the audience participation in tonight’s show, which had hitherto always been the jewel in their comedic crown, this unfortunately also failed to ignite in quite the same way as it had before, although I should add that this had nothing to do with the concept itself, which remains a definite ace up their sleeve, but was here let down by many of the pre-selected audience members being the same seasoned professionals that had already appeared on screen, alongside others for who performing was clearly a profession, resulting in the whole conceit being rendered just a bit too slick for my taste. The beauty of its use in past shows has always been Linus and Josephs uncanny ability to riff off whatever unforeseen chaos the ‘joe-public’ audience member throws their way, and in doing so have spun comedy gold out of many unforeseen moments. Given Karp’s immediate response to a tech malfunction at the top of tonight’s performance, this creative gift for unscripted comedy is still very much alive and well, except both he and Martin seemed somehow deprived of the ability to ad-lib quite as much as in previous shows given the ease with which the audience contributors took to their roles. Considering that this was press night, and therefore not a typical audience, I imagine this minor issue will have already rectified itself, and that the unscripted silliness will have returned with gusto for the rest of the run. There was definitely one stand out moment when Sebastian Croft, who had been plucked out of the audience to be on stage as the Prince’s doppelgänger, clearly hadn’t quite banked on having to flirt with his own on-screen character, Prince Balthazar, a moment he was able to play to perfection, but ‘perfection’ has never really been the selling point of an Awkward Productions show. It is the rather more ‘home-made’ charm, (although no doubt painstakingly created to appear that way), that has always been this couples greatest selling point and I hope, as far as the video inserts are concerned at least, they manage to find a better balance for their unique gifts, away from the screen and back onto the stage.
Such observations shouldn’t detract from the fact that THE FIT PRINCE (Who Gets Switched On in the Square in the Frosty Castle the Night Before (Insert Public Holiday Here)), is a very funny and highly enjoyable production which, when it hits, it hits big time, proving Karp and Martin still have the ability to surprise, delight and innovate with this their fourth original show. Their ABBA-adjacent Swedonian super-group parody BAAB is hilarious, (songs throughout the show having once again been written by Golden Globe–nominated songwriter and producer Leland), and the life-size monstrosity that is Gerta McMurder, (a Jim Henson style grotesque creature geniusly operated/performed by Martin) is a pure and unexpected theatrical delight.
If Panto isn’t quite your thing, but you still want to treat yourself to a production that is just as hilarious, entertaining and unashamedly queer then get yourself down to the Kings Head Theatre this festive season. With increased and well-deserved success abroad, the opportunity to see them in London might be a lot less next year!
★★★★
The Fit Prince: (Who Gets Switched On in the Square in the Frosty Castle the Night Before (Insert Public Holiday Here)) is on at the Kings Head Theatre until 3rd January 2026. Tickets available here
review: Simon J. Webb
photographs: Anna Clare