Who doesn't love an adventure where you can choose your own fate? Deciding which direction you want to follow in your quests, RuneSical is inspired by the online game RuneScape, though can be enjoyed by all, whether an accustomed and experienced player, or unawares of the concept altogether.
Taking on the mystical journey alongside 'Lance_054' (Christian Maynard), each segment ends with the option to pick where the story goes next, meaning there are plenty of different pathways to take, should you want to watch again. Along the way, you're guaranteed to meet a whole host of wacky characters to keep you entertained. Often giving panto vibes with the silliness, there is essence of energetic and catchy songwriting that works with the comedic elements to create something fun.
Along the particular way taken on this occasion, Lance befriends an elf-like character named Odin (played by Katie Pritchard), and another girl named Pearl (Jenna Sian O'Hara) - both turning out to have unexpected impacts on the plot as the performance progresses. With Sam Cochrane - also writer and director - narrating the piece as the Wizard, they are joined by the other actor-musicians, and various game characters, played by Alex Prescot, Theo Diedrick, Lydia Barton Lovett, and 'Mod Mark'. Becoming anything and everything, and bringing a relevant track to the table for each, the cast made scenes with the Spanish song in the wilderness; the one with the fishermen, or Kamal the camel, and his sand being particularly notable... but who knows what you might get! An array of props is used for these quick changes, and the show fully encompasses this as extra humour, in conjunction with the amusing jokes and references littered throughout. A little audience interaction, besides the guiding of the narrative, adds to the effects of the intimate space too, as Lance finds his way through the online universe he's found himself falling in.
It is essential to embrace the progressively mad ideas that come from every turn, take hold of the baguette of choice, and make those decisions to carve your own voyage. RuneSical is a total laugh, and the prize parody for those wanting to escape by delving into a fantasy.
