Dragon Review: Young Frankenstein – Yvonne Arnaud Theatre

Published on: 4 Jun, 2026
Updated on: 4 Jun, 2026

Frankenstein and Igor in full flow

By Ferenc Hepp

Young Frankenstein is certainly not your traditional West End offering. It is a razzle-dazzle parody of the horror film genre, more specifically the Frankenstein films of the 1930s.

The style is a complete mixture, which may remind audiences of anything from Beetlejuice, The Rocky Horror Picture Show and even 42nd Street.

The spectacle and entertainment are for everyone; however, the humour can be on the adult side sometimes, with a lot of innuendo thrown in, but it is mostly done in quite a subtle way.

But there is nothing subtle about the performance at the Yvonne Arnaud by the Guildford School of Acting. Will Holyhead’s direction and Richard Roe’s choreography ensures that the pace and the energy is constant throughout, and this young cast does not disappoint.

The ensemble in one of their many chorus dance numbers

This is perfectly backed up by Roger Ness’ set design and Alice McNicholas’s costume design.

The feeling is very gothic at the commencement of the show, however, the black soon transforms into a colourful plethora of characters with plenty of dance numbers. The characterisations and movements are all exaggerated to represent the style that Brooks was going for, and there is plenty to do for everyone.

Having said that, some stand out performances do deserve a special mention. George Acworth as Frederick Frankenstein (or we should say Fronkensteen!) is on stage for much of the show, and has a great stage presence with initial innocence, turning into a mad professor character.

His creation, The Monster, is played by Conor Cox and that is not an easy task, which Cox executes to a very high standard.

I particularly enjoyed his change of character at the end following the transference between him and his creator. Emma Jane Cook as Inga and Rachel Cadley as Frau Blucher both create very funny personas with accents that enhance the humour and which are maintained brilliantly throughout.

The final special mention absolutely must go to Ashton Sharp as Igor. Very much a highlight.

What is Igor up to now!

His physicality, his facial expressions, his energy and total commitment to this fun role shines through from beginning to end. It is obvious that he worked very hard to develop this part and he succeeded 100 per cent.

I have no doubt that we will see him in many professional roles to come, remember the name!

This musical is more about the big ensemble numbers rather than the storytelling.

Sometimes the style of the narrative does not offer a lot of variety in tone, so we find ourselves looking forward to the chorus coming back on. However, when they do, the choreography is imaginative and fun, and the actors work together superbly. You have everything from monster style moves, to yodelling and a big tap number.

The set is mostly manoeuvred by the cast and the pace is excellent. I did expect more belly laughs, and I am sure the minor technical hiccups will be sorted very quickly, but I certainly came away with a smile on my face, and it is worth every penny of the ticket price to see these hugely talented youngsters at the very start of their professional careers.

Young Frankenstein runs until Saturday, June 6 and tickets are available via www.yvonne-arnaud.co.uk or telephone 01483 440000