Review: Dog Man the Musical - brilliantly bonkers and a half-term treat

If you have any children who are - or have recently been - under 11 years old, then chances are you will have met some of Dav Pilkey’s creations.

The graphic novels are ubiquitous . If it’s not Captain Underpants it’ll be Cat Kid, or perhaps Donut Squad, or very likely Dog Man. The books are in every sense bright, they are daft, they create their own world and kids lap them up. In a world of screens, an obsession with any kind of book can only be a very good thing. Having said that, the stories are now spreading into other platforms too; Captain Underpants is a TV series and a movie, while Dog Man - a half-man, half-dog crimefighter - was made into a film recently.

So given that Dog Man has had the Hollywood treatment, how would the musical version currently at Fareham Live stack up? How would it work? And could it possibly satisfy a nine-year-old Pilkey obsessive and a seven-year-old who is increasingly to be found with her nose in a Pilkey book?

The answer is… it’s ridiculous. But actually quite brilliant.

So, adults, what you need to know is that in this fictional world Dog Man, Captain Underpants and the rest are all the creations of two boys, Harold Hutchins and George Beard. In the books, this pair are the author and illustrator, although they also appear as characters in Captain Underpants.

Here, this used to good effect - the pair have been sent home from school for not being enthusiastic enough about the school’s musical Annie, so they decide to create their own in George’s treehouse.

So what follows has an excuse for being home-made - buildings obviously made of cardboard, an aunt’s old vacuum cleaner suddenly become part of the musical’s plot - but it also has a sense of the fantastical, because plenty of characters appear who are not Harold or George. And this combination of the creative and the ramshackle gives a huge energy to the show. Getting on your critical high horse you could say the concept is a paean to imagination and creativity, while the plot looks at the power of family love and the possibility of second chances. Watching as a normal human being you’ll probably just laugh, and applaud in a few places.

It’s not just child humour. There are several knowing moments - the upbeat first number has lyrics which say “this is the opening song which is meant to make you happy” or similar, and there are references to other musicals such as Hamilton. A couple of times there are physical gags about forgetting and then adding necessary props all too obviously - but they really work.

There are some parts which are more aimed at adults - one of the Dog Man books is called a Tale of Two Kitties, and you’ll find a song in the musical is based on the Tale of Two Cities line: “It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.”

But while things like that raise a knowing smile, they are not the point. Because let’s face it, at the end of the day it’s a musical whose titular character has no lines because he can only woof.

It’s a musical where half the plot revolves around Flippy the evil fish which was accidentally fed brain-boosting pills rather than fish food by a police chief, and has telekinesis. Flippy is caught and frozen, and then accidentally killed and squashed by Dog Man rolling over it, but is dropped down a chimney into a “Living Spray” factory and brought back to life, and medics manage to insert it into a techno-fish at which point it is invincible and tries to destroy the city by bringing buildings to life. This plan is vanquished by a lorryload of French salad dressing. You see? Madness. Just roll with it.

Full marks to the other villain Petey the Cat (Sam Kipling), who was portrayed in a lithe, stalking and prancing way by - and with his cloned “child” played a wonderful part in the alphabet song in which “H is for Homicide”. And Dog Man himself (Renan Teodoro) had an easy time of it in terms of learning lines but put in a great, expressive performance.

It’s a full-on two-hour riot and a perfect way to start half-term. And yes, it hit the mark with both the nine-year-old and the seven-year-old. You’ve got until Sunday afternoon to catch it at Fareham Live - it’s well worth your time.

For tickets see here.