Five actors and one of the strangest true stories of the Second World War: British intelligence dressed a corpse as a Royal Marines officer and floated him off Spain with fake invasion plans. The show won the Olivier for Best New Musical in London and arrived on Broadway with its original company intact and its jokes per minute undiminished. If you like your history delivered at speed with quick-change farce, nothing else on Broadway is close.
What to expect
A small-cast, high-velocity musical comedy in which performers swap gender, rank and nationality mid-scene, backed by a compact band. Expect rapid patter numbers, several sincere moments that land harder for the surrounding silliness, and a set built to be reconfigured constantly.
Good to know
- The John Golden is on West 45th Street, one of Broadway's smaller and more intimate houses.
- Take the A, C or E to 42nd Street or any line into Times Square.
- The jokes come fast and several are very British; sitting closer helps you catch them.
- It is broadly suitable for teenagers upwards, with wartime themes and some innuendo.
- The small house means good seats disappear earlier in the week than at the big musicals.
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Common questions
Is the story true?
Yes. Operation Mincemeat was a real 1943 deception in which British intelligence planted false documents on a corpse to convince Germany the Allies would invade Greece rather than Sicily.
How many actors are in it?
Five, covering every role in the show through rapid costume and character changes, which is a large part of the comedy.
Did it win anything?
It won the Olivier Award for Best New Musical in London before transferring to Broadway with its creators, the company SpitLip, still performing in it.
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