Evil of the Daleks – the final end?

01 November 2006

Those lucky enough to make it down to Portsmouth, to see the stage production of Evil of the Daleks (between 25-28 October) will not have been disappointed. This was an absolutely first-class presentation of a classic Doctor Who story.

It’s hard to bring back a Doctor Who story from the 60s, especially if you are aiming it at a family audience – because a fair percentage of younger people’s knowledge only goes back as far as Christopher Eccleston’s ninth Doctor.

A lot has changed since then – something which the team putting this stage production together really took on board. Today’s Doctor Who stories are shorter, faster, and more emotionally-driven than their predecessors – making a ‘straight’ adaptation of a classic story would jar with a modern audience. Also, the older stories were written in a time without video recorders – an episode was seen once and that was it, so there is a fair amount of catching up and reiteration of plot points padding out each episode. Watch the episodes of a classic story back to back and these can begin to grate.

Evil of the Daleks – Nick Scovell as the DoctorEvil of the Daleks – Nick Scovell as the Doctor

This stage adaptation was smart – wrapping a cliffhanger-based intermission around two solid and well-paced hours of drama. It’s true, the plot did deviate from the original in some ways. For instance, gone was the theft of the TARDIS, replaced by it being drawn off course. Gone was Kemel. Waterfield became a reverend (a move which allowed us to empathise more with the character and gave him more internal conflict). The climax took place on Earth, not Skaro, saving lots of messing around planet-hopping – and avoided having to introduce new viewers to the Dalek home world.

Evil of the Daleks – the Daleks and the Dalek EmperorEvil of the Daleks – the Daleks and the Dalek Emperor

The core of the story – the search for the ‘human factor’ which the Daleks have identified as necessary to their survival, by testing Jamie – remains intact. After this test, they implant the human factor into two Daleks (ok, yes, it was three originally) who then become the childlike friends of the Doctor and Jamie.

Evil of the Daleks – a Dalek tells the Doctor that he must lie to JamieEvil of the Daleks – a Dalek tells the Doctor that he must lie to Jamie

The acting was first-class across the board, but special mention must be made of Nick Scovell’s Doctor, a portrayal which lovingly borrowed from Patrick Troughton’s, without ever being a parody or impersonation. John-Paul McCrohan played Jamie with plenty of bite and though the part was short, Rosie Grant played a convincing Victoria. The rest of the cast were top-notch, though of course – as to be expected – the real stars were the Daleks. These were of a hybrid design, borrowing from both the classic and new series – working very well, with their understated green colour scheme. Sadly, Nick Briggs wasn’t available to provide the Dalek voices – but these were well-voiced nonetheless.

Evil of the Daleks – the cast take a bowEvil of the Daleks – the cast take a bow

The set was sparse but very well done, with a giant fireplace dominating the stage until the climax – where it opened up, revealing a huge Dalek Emperor. This was the classic Dalek Emperor from the original Evil of the Daleks – the team rightly avoiding the temptation to use the design from the new series.

Martin Johnson’s music was atmospheric and gave the production the sinister edge it deserved.

Evil of the Daleks – the Daleks and the Dalek EmperorEvil of the Daleks – the Daleks and the Dalek Emperor

As with any live performance, it wasn’t totally faultless – there was a gun prop which didn’t work first time and a Dalek with a slightly wobbly head – all of which were easy to overlook since the cast recovered so quickly and so well. We can even write these off as ‘homage’ (ahem!) to the original series’ slightly wobbly sets. None of these minor things got in the way of what was an exciting and entertaining production, which sold out every single one of its performances.

Evil of the Daleks – the Daleks and the Dalek EmperorEvil of the Daleks – the Daleks and the Dalek Emperor

The climax was especially good, with the two Dalek factions fighting to the mutual death, in the presence of the Emperor.

Evil of the Daleks – the Doctor faces the Daleks and the Dalek EmperorEvil of the Daleks – the Doctor faces the Daleks and the Dalek Emperor

The events raised money for Children in Need and were such a success that the team is currently considering another Dalek production as a follow-up. So it looks like this won’t be ‘the final end’ – and, based on this performance, it will be something that’s not to be missed.

Evil of the Daleks – a Dalek tortures WaterfieldEvil of the Daleks – a Dalek tortures Waterfield

Go behind the scenes of Evil of the Daleks