Little Lark of London

“Ladies and gentlemen, let The Hunger Games begin . . .”

Seventeen years after Suzanne Collins published the original Hunger Games book, lighting the spark that would turn into a blazing fire of a dystopian series, The Hunger Games on Stage arrives in London. The stage production, which is playing in a theatre that has been built specifically for the show in Canary Wharf, follows the events of the first book in the series, in which a young girl named Katniss Everdeen (Mia Carragher) in a post-apocalyptic North America (now known as Panem) must compete in the Hunger Games, in which selected tributes aged twelve to eighteen from each “district” must fight to the death in an arena in the Capitol. 

The production, adapted by Conor McPherson and directed by Matthew Dunster, has Katniss narrating the events in first person, the same style as the books, but it takes away from the impact of the show, with Carragher jumping between fighting for her life and suddenly telling the audience about her inner feelings. The beginning of the show is made to feel like a small-town drama, with Katniss and her friend, Gale Hawthorne (Tristan Waterson), illegally hunting in the woods before the Reaping, in which the names of the male and female tribute from their district, District 12, will be selected for the Hunger Games. McPherson does a good job in introducing the characters, including Primrose Everdeen (Sophia Ally), the sister of Katniss, and their mother (Ruther Everett), but not enough time is given to the family dynamic, leading to no sympathy being gained when twelve-year-old Primrose is selected to fight, which leads to Katniss volunteering in her place.

From there, Katniss and the male tribute, Peeta Mellark (Euan Garrett), who we learn has a history with Katniss through her narration, are brought to the Capitol by the gloriously over-the-top Effie Trinket (Tamsin Carroll) and their alcoholic mentor, Haymitch Abernathy (Joshua Lacey), the only person from District 12 to have ever won the Hunger Games. Together, Katniss and Peeta must prepare to enter not only the arena but the strange and futuristic world of the Capitol, which has been designed to appear as a Blade Runner-like casino, neon glowing from the many screens and performers dancing and singing around the stage. 

One knows it is going to be an interesting production when John Malkovich is the weakest link in the cast, seemingly reading lines off of a teleprompter in his on-screen appearances as President Snow. Moments that should instill fear and obedience in the citizens of Panem seem laughable as Malkovich speaks with no emotion, often staring into the distance instead of at the performers who are actually on the stage. The rest of the cast are literally running circles around the arena and still manage to deliver their lines with more passion and intensity, even if the attempts at American accents leave much to be desired. 

The set itself is a character in its own right, with set designer Miriam Buether creating an arena-like space in which sections of the seats are able to move to accommodate different scenes, creating open spaces for settings like the forests of District 12 and becoming more compressed to illustrate the claustrophobia of the Hunger Games arena. There aren’t many set pieces, but they tend to appear from underneath the stage, typically accompanied by smoke effects and lights. The majority of the set’s enhancements come from the videos designed by Tal Rosner, which unfortunately have a tendency to take away from the more realistic aspects of the show, showing poorly-made graphics and strange close-ups of characters that feel out of place. One would think that there would be more “footage” of the Hunger Games themselves to be shown on the screens, allowing the audience to see the perspective of the Capitol, but only one or two scenes get this treatment. 

The highlight of the show is the Hunger Games themselves, in which choreographer Charlotte Broom and fight director Kev McCurdy have joined forces to create an impressive display of acrobatics, having the cast use the entire theatre as their warzone. Standout performers include the knife-wielding Lianna Cottrill as Clove, Felipe Pacheco as Cato (and also as the fight captain), and Mracellus Hall as Thresh, an imposing figure protective of the younger tribute from his district, Rue (Aiya Agustin). But the performer given the most tasks is Carragher as Katniss, who must climb rigging meant to represent trees, run around the space shooting arrows (with illusions provided by Chris Fisher) and still continue to act as the audience’s connection to the story as a whole. It’s a difficult job, especially for someone making their debut, but Carragher does a solid job. 

Another interesting aspect of The Hunger Games on Stage that will appeal to fans is the details that have been included, from finally getting names for many of the tributes in the 74th Hunger Games to references to more recent novels like The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and Sunrise on the Reaping – though one of the tribute’s names has been changed with no explanation (Foxface is now Fossa, played by Artemis Stamouli), which is a bit odd. There are a few other moments that are changed, but these are done to give characters more of a connection to one another, like Gale giving Katniss the iconic mockingjay pin and Katniss and Peeta having their pre-games interview together with Caesar Flickerman (Stavros Demetraki) instead of separately. 

Ultimately, The Hunger Games on Stage is an impressive spectacle, but it struggles when it comes to the more emotional aspects of the original novel. It has been created with all of the spectacle of the Capitol with the irony of forgetting to represent the importance of the districts of Panem. There are plenty of little references to the series as a whole sprinkled in throughout the show, so fans will be satisfied by that, but will leave wanting more than just the crumbs thrown to them. 

The Hunger Games on Stage is currently running until October 2026 at Canary Wharf Troubadour Theatre. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.