Not the Messiah (He's A Very Naughty Boy), Royal Albert Hall, London

2.00

Python worship hard to Handel

And now for something completely different? Well, yes and no; swings and roundabouts, square pegs and round holes, know what I mean, nudge, nudge. Eric Idle and composer John Du Prez have already conquered Broadway and the West End with their stage musical version of Spamalot. But on Friday – to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the first Monty Python broadcast – they presented a one-off performance of a piece that is just a smidgen more megalomaniac.

Not the Messiah (He's A Very Naughty Boy) is a comic Handel-spoofing oratorio version of The Life of Brian, the controversial 1979 movie which satirised blind faith and the underhand wiles of Christian zealotry through the fate of the hapless mixed-race Brian Cohen, a nobody who is mistaken for the Messiah, becomes a reluctant revolutionary with the Judean People's Front and winds up nailed to a cross.

The fans (and they packed the place to the rafters) received it rapturously, but then I reckon that they would have blown the roof off even if the surviving team members (excluding John Cleese) had sent along their bow tie-sporting fridges as stand-ins rather than turned up themselves. And who am I (as a selective admirer) to knock the fun enjoyed by the greying faithful (and their remarkably compliant kids). I enjoyed the ravishing silk-bristled texture with which the BBC Symphony Orchestra (in fantastic form, throughout, presumably for a considerable fee) performed "Liberty Bell", the Python theme-tune at the start. And I liked the way Michael Palin (during the encores) unsheathed himself from his drag clobber as Mrs Betty Parkinson to emerge as a fully-formed lumberjack for an (oddly ropey) rendition of that song. Also, dull would he be of soul who failed to experience a bit of a thrill when the entire audience waved their candles in time to cheery old "Bright Side of Life".

So how did I feel the rest of the time? Sick as a dead parrot? No; lonely mostly and a little mystified. The essential difference between the mediocrity of Not the Messiah and the fitful genuinely hilarity of the stage Spamalot is that Idle and Du Prez understand the genre of musical comedy and so can have spirited fun mixing Holy Grail and Broadway-reaching ambitions. But while they may appreciate the concert hall protocols of oratorio, they don't comprehend its deep conventions. And in any case, what would satire in this area be subverting? Life of Brian is an attack on mindless worship, not the faith itself. I take no joy in saying that this immense event reminded me of nothing so much as Florence Foster Jenkins, the notoriously tone-deaf American socialite who used to hire the Carnegie Hall at her own expense for her vanity caterwaulings.

Independent Comment
blog comments powered by Disqus
News in pictures
World news in pictures
Arts & Ents blogs

Owen Howells: From the UK to Australia and back again (and again!)

Owen Howells is a DJ/producer who grew up in Australia but was born in the UK. He came back to the U...

Brighton Fringe 2013 – Is everyone sitting uncomfortably?

Fancy seeing a play about serial killers? How about inviting a funeral director into your home for a...

The Fall ‘Darkness Visible’ – Series 1, episode 2

There are a good many moments in the second episode of this psychological thriller that deserve refl...

       
Independent
Travel Shop
India and Shimla
14 nights from only £1899pp Find out more
Prague city break
Three nights from £199pp Find out more
4* Soreda hotel break, Malta
Seven nights all-inclusive from £399pp Find out more

ES Rentals

    James Pembroke: The man who's eaten everywhere

    The man who's eaten everywhere

    Few people know more about restaurants than James Pembroke, who only spent five mealtimes at home during his entire childhood.
    A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?

    A Berliner in 1963 – but did John F Kennedy once admire Adolf Hitler?

    The young JFK praised 'superior' Nordic races during visits to Germany
    Banned Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof to attend Cannes Film Festival 2013, his first public appearance since prison

    Banned Iranian director to attend Cannes Film Festival

    Mohammad Rasoulof to make his first public appearance since being imprisoned three years ago
    Seeing the larger picture: Inspiring images of space

    Seeing the larger picture: Inspiring images of space

    An exhibition explores images how photography has shaped astronomy
    Eat Spam and carry on: Wartime pamphlets could teach us a thing or two about healthy, thrifty eating

    Eat Spam and carry on

    Wartime pamphlets could teach us a thing or two about healthy, thrifty eating
    Facial hair: Cat beards and the purrrsuit of excellence

    Facial hair

    Cat beards and the purrrsuit of excellence
    The 10 Best salt and pepper sets

    The 10 Best salt and pepper sets

    Whether they're for everyday use or to make your dining table look just right, it's worth getting a stylish shaker...
    Ferran Soriano: Predicting success if Manchester City 'vision' is followed

    Ferran Soriano: Predicting success if Manchester City 'vision' is followed

    Chief executive says trophies will come if a 'core' of suitable players is in place
    Thomas Müller: We couldn't handle losing a Champions League Final again

    Thomas Müller: We couldn't handle losing a Champions League Final again

    The Bayern Munich forward tells Tim Rich his side have to shed chokers' tag after two recent final defeats
    Giro d'Italia: The Stelvio Pass - cycling's killer climb

    The Stelvio Pass - cycling's killer climb

    As the Giro d'Italia tackles the brutal climb, Simon Usborne takes on the snow and switchbacks – and soon realises what the fuss is about
    National archives: Edward VIII’s phone calls - and how MI5 bugged them

    Edward VIII’s phone calls - and how MI5 bugged them

    Newly unearthed papers reveal a shocking extra dimension to the constitutional crisis over monarch’s abdication
    Sent down at the Old Bailey: A tour of the world's most famous court

    Sent down at the Old Bailey

    A tour of the world's most famous court
    Hollywood's random acts of red-carpet kindness

    Hollywood's random acts of red-carpet kindness

    The Hangover actor Zach Galifianakis’s date for his movie premieres isn’t arm candy  – it’s his 87-year-old friend who he saved from homelessness
    British football scores an own goal

    British football scores an own goal

    Many managers barely survive a year in post. Martin Baker talks to experts who make a case for clubs using forensic business skills to find the best staff
    James Lawton: Sergio Garcia cracks as major fault line opens up again

    James Lawton

    Sergio Garcia cracks as major fault line opens up again