EDINBURGH 2025: Review: ESCAPE ROOM: THE MUSICAL, Just The Tonic At The Caves

At university, the ‘Lock and Key Society’ were six close friends who played escape rooms together. Two years since they last met, they each receive an invitation to compete in Escape Room: The Musical. But the puzzles in this escape room are designed to reveal secrets about the players, and soon tensions are high! What follows is a fun hour of comedy drama.

This ensemble piece introduces its original characters through the opening sequence and number. We meet sisters Ellie and Poppy, who are constantly bickering; poised Olivia who seems more focused on the appearance of being in happy couple than the reality of her boyfriend Johnny “with a hat”, who takes every opportunity to make a pun; another Johnny, who is struck by stage fright and wants to go home, and Max who is focused on trying to get everyone to solve the puzzles together. They are joined on stage by Pierre, a French man who has found himself also stuck in the escape room and serves as an audience point of view.

With so many characters, they are all more-or-less defined by one key trait as there isn’t enough time to get a deeper characterisation. However, the potentially overly convoluted concept works in large part due to the conviction of the performers. The idea that the escape room they are in is in front of an audience because “you can’t book anywhere in Edinburgh in August without it becoming a Fringe venue” gets a knowing laugh. The characters’ awareness of the audience gives rise to some entertaining moments, such as some very reluctant tap dancing!

Musical numbers are mostly comedic and accompanied by complementing dance routines, choreographed to fit the small space. Highlights include the ‘will-they-won’t-they’ duets between the two Johnnys, and Liv’s song which moves away from the comedic tone to explore her insecurities. The actor playing Pierre stole the show, with plenty comedy arising from him observing the antics of the others (often in French!).

This show is about friendships, how they change over time, and how far you would go to try and rekindle them. For a fun hour with some quirky characters, original music and a good amount of silliness, check out Escape Room: The Musical!

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