THE Far Pavilions, which opened in the West End last month, is reported to have received £4 million of funding - mostly from Asian investors - and every penny shows in this spectacular production.

The musical melodrama is based on the 1978 novel by M M Kaye and has had to compress this epic brick of a book into a two-and-a-half hour stage play, set in the Raj era of India at a time when the British Empire was at the height of its power.

Lyricist Stephen Clark, who has won an Olivier award for his re-worked version of Martin Guerre for Cameron Mackintosh, does a respectable job of hurtling through the background details of this energetic tale of love and war before concentrating on the matter in hand.

Visually, it's a stunning show. The set is centred around a revolving drum that eddies and swirls to add plenty of movement and some slick scene changes, resulting in a play with a graceful fluidity that keeps the audience on its toes.

We are seamlessly transported to caves, mountains and officers' quarters and, of course, there is the Maharajah's gorgeous mirrored palace, extravagently dressed in the richest gold, reflecting the beautiful saris worn by the jewelled dancers within.


My only complaint, really, is about the music itself. The lyrics which may not necessarily be ingenius but are certainly clear and strong are almost enough to carry it, with the support of some breathtaking dance numbers. However, while I accept the tunes are far from disasterous, there are none of those memorable toe-tappers or tear jerkers that a West End musical so badly needs.

Every song is performed with tremendous passion and skill by an almost uniformly excellent cast, but Philip Henderson's music simply fails to capitalise on his chance to make the most of the rich exoticism of Indian music. In fact, the strongest songs of the night are the rousing all-male numbers sung in a "British" style, and a couple of passionate and spine-tingling solos by the male lead, the rather dashing Hadley Fraser as Ashton Pelham-Martyn.

There is also a strong performance from Diane Pilkington as Ashton's English fiance, Belinda, and Gayatri Iyer's Princess Anjuli is as beautiful, mild-mannered and brave as a musical heroine should be. Dean Hussain also brings a bit of light relief as Indian soldier Awal Shah, and proves to be a favourite with the audience.

The Far Pavilions isn't, musically, the best show in town, but if you're looking for an expertly performed and magnificently colourful extravaganza that is just a little bit different, then it could make for a fun night out.

  • The Far Pavilions plays at the Shaftesbury Theatre in Shaftesbury Avenue, London, and is booking until September 4. Tickets are available from the box office on 0870 145 1163.