Here We Are

Lyttelton at the National Theatre

Playing until 28th June 2025

Book tickets

Photo credit: Marc Brenner

Exploring the lives of the privileged, their trivial pursuit of pleasure, and succumbing to escapism of a terrible and harsh reality of society collapse. Here We Are combines two distinct movies, The Discreet Charm of the Bougeoise and Exterminating Angel, and successfully crafted a narrative that is surprisingly joined up and cohesive.   

Beginning with a group of wealthy New Yorkers searching for a place to have lunch, which includes the wealthy businessman Leo (Rory Kinnear), his ditzy wife Marianne (Jane Krakowski) and Marianne’s baby sister Fritz (Chumisa Dornford-May), plastic surgeon Paul (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) and his wife Claudia (Martha Plimpton) and Raffaele (Paulo Szot), a diplomat from the made-up country of Moranda. The cast stumbles from restaurant to restaurant in Act I, but despite numerous attempts, they continue to go hungry and unable to obtain the sustenance they crave.  

Though perhaps not immediately obvious to the audience, all of these incidences are indeed connected to the events of Act II, pointing to a wider societal breakdown and possible famine. This is then further explored as the characters become stuck in a room in the embassy of Moranda, where they simply couldn’t bring themselves to leave and face the horrific events taking place outside of those walls and choose to live in temporary ignorant bliss, however short lived that is. The entire concept of this musical is completely surreal, from tiptoeing the self-imposed and perceived thresholds not to be crossed through to the catastrophic events that are presumed to be taking place outside. There is even a bear that wonders onto the stage and dances with Marianne in Act II. Even after hours of reflection, I still don’t understand what that is meant to represent, perhaps speaking to the craziness of it all and the complexity of the narrative that David Ives is trying to convey.

However, one can only blame the complex narrative so much before accepting that Here We Are is just a unique blend of mess and chaos. The woolly concept of an apocalypse is poorly conveyed and much of the production is spent on the excessive whining of the wealthy, trivialising everything else that is happening in the world around them. The truth is, I spent a pitiful amount of time holding my head in my hands in hysterical laughter as I wondered what kind of poor choices I made to deserve seeing this show or indeed what is happening on stage.

However, despite all this, Krakowski was able to carve open a path for her character, harnessing her full arsenal of skills and comedy to create a character that casts a shadow over the rest. She is a socialite through and through, and I could not help but draw comparisons to her TV character, Jacqueline from the Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Harry Hadden-Paten, who plays the Bishop looking to change career, is another standout performer, complementing the unreal situation the characters were put into and  has a wonderful dynamic with Krakowski’s Marianne in a scene where the two dined on paper from a book in the embassy.

Badged as Stephen Sondheim’s last musical, it is clear that this is an unfinished product and at least from my perspective, none of the music or lyrics appear to be particularly unique, arousing, or defines a particular moment. Granted, I did enjoy a few snippets like when Dornford-May’s Fritz had a sing-off with the soldier that she has a crush on (Richard Fleeshman), and see who could hold a note continuously for the longest. However, this is far from what I would call a monumental musical number. It is worth noting that Act II of Here We Are is devoid of music, playing to the solemness of the situation as the cast descend into a situation akin to the Lord of the Flies.

Even though the show is littered with creative mishaps, the set designed by David Zinn actually works marvellously. Opening with a pristine stage covered by mirrors from all sides, it is chic, clean and aligns well with the superficial glamour of the high society. Even as chaos descends, the servants (Denis O'Hare and Tracie Bennett) continue to clean the space as if this is the only thing that matters. Notably, O'Hare and Bennett play a myriad of other waiters in the restaurants and servants in the embassy, generating much laughter throughout. Various sets are lowered from the ceiling to the stage as the group visits various restaurants, but always returning to the back of square one at the back of the stage when their efforts end in failure. In Act II, starting in a well decorated room, the set is pushed to the front edge of the stage, as if all the space has disappeared from the world and the cast now trapped within the confines of the space in which they found themselves in.

Like the asteroid that killed off the dinosaurs, Here We Are with all its star power crash landed in London, causing a similar level of devastation and damnation for those unlucky enough to see it. Instead of a well-crafted piece of art, this feels more like a mishmash project put together by a high school student, and not even a talented one at that.  

Creatives

Book: David Ives

Music and Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim

Director: Joe Mantello

Set and Costume Designer: David Zinn

Choreographer: Sam Pinkleton

Sound Designer: Tom Gibbons