When the Supreme Being grants Her creations a Q&A, it yields surprising answers
The Twitter account @TheTweetOfGod has millions of followers, thanks partly to David Javerbaum, the mortal who claims to be the account’s co-creator, with God. So perhaps it is by divine will that Javerbaum’s stage show has been a huge hit on Broadway. Now, at its London incarnation, those seeking an audience with the Almighty discover that God has chosen to appear in female form – specifically that of comedian Zoe Lyons. It’s an inspired choice for this sparky performer has, er, God-given timing and authority. She declares up front that she’s a “lapsed Catholic lesbian”, so it gives nothing away to reveal that this is an evening of irreverent humour.
Clad in white silk pyjamas and furry slippers, She materialises on Tim Shortall’s spectacular yet intimate set, a huge bed with lavish satin sheets and a bedhead that doubles as a screen for surreal back projections. She may be ready for bed, but the deity is far from laidback. She is exercised not only by finding Herself incarnate in The Vaults below Waterloo Station rather than at the much larger, glitzier Palladium, but by the divine desire to revise the Ten Commandments. "I’m not a one-list wonder," declares Lyons’ deity, tweeting (naturally) Her new diktats, notably: “Thou shalt not seek a personal relationship with me” (although She does promise to continue to ‘save the Queen’).
In all this she’s assisted by her ’wingmen’, celestially camp Archangels Gabriel (Tom Bowen, sporting tight lycra) and Michael (Matt Telford, all glitz and glam). Although it’s Gabriel’s job to write up commandments on a tablet that's moved on from those low-tech stone models, his Boss reminds us that he “doesn’t just do Bible btw. He’s the angel who dictated the words of the Quran to Muhammad”. Gabriel may have an angelic temperament, but Michael is a bit of a rebel (though not in the Satanic mould), wanting answers to his doubts, perhaps influenced by his job to pass on audience questions. It’s just a shame the questions are spoof set-ups tailored to scripted punchlines ("Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" – "The rooster"). Spontaneous responses to real questions might be risky, but divine inspiration would surely bless Lyons.
Gabriel is on message with handy quotes, going right back to "In the beginning…", and added context comes from the Creator. “And God said, ‘Let there be light’," utters Gabriel, about which God reminisces: “One of those lightbulb moments.” She shares the fun of stippling archipelagos and creating 400,000 species of beetles during an exhausting Day Six that ends with the creation of Ada and Eve (and the realisation that Ada must morph into Adam in order to procreate).
But coming right up to date, God is disillusioned with Her creation, dissecting modern politics and dismissing Brexit ("Leave me the hell out of it!") to huge applause. Benji Sperring directs with spirit and believers will marvel at Lyons’ miraculous apotheosis at the climax, for which praise be to three wise persons, Magic Consultant Scott Penrose, Lighting Designer Clancy Flynn and Sound Designer Yvonne Gilbert. All hail the creation of an unholy seasonal treat.
By Judi Herman
Photos by Geraint Lewis
An Act of God runs until Sunday 12 January. 8pm (Tue-Sat), 4pm (Sat & Sun only). £25-£35. The Vaults Theatre, SE1 7AD. 08448 157 141. www.actofgodlondon.com