REVIEW: ALREADY PERFECT @ KING'S HEAD THEATRE

🎭 Already Perfect

📍 King's Head Theatre, 116p Upper Street, Islington Square London, N1 1QP

🗓 Thursday 15th January 2026

⭐️⭐️⭐️

ALREADY PERFECT FEELS PERFECTLY OVERSTUFFED

There is no questioning the raw, kinetic talent of Levi Kreis. The Tony Award-winner doesn't just play the piano, he wrestles with it - coaxing out gospel-inflected melodies that vibrate through the intimate auditorium of the King's Head Theatre. However, in his world-premiere musical ALREADY PERFECT, the brilliance of the performer is frequently stifled by a book that refuses to get out of its own way.

The premise is fertile ground for a theatrical masterpiece. On the eve of filming his Broadway show, a fractured Levi is visited in his dressing room by his sponsor Ben (a grounded Yiftach "Iffy" Mizrahi), and a personification of his younger self (Killian Thomas Lefevre). What follows is a 100 minute whirlwind through Kreis's psyche, jumping between dozens of peripheral characters and traumatic vignettes.

The issues for me unfortunately lie in the script and the execution. Under Dave Solomon's direction, the production leans heavily into a freneticism that leaves little room for the audience to breathe. While Lefervre is undeniably a standout - mirroring Kreis's vocal agility with a haunting, youthful vulnerability - the dialogue far too frequently descends into "therapy speak". We are told of the protagonist's growth and internal shifts far more often than we are allowed to feel them.

Seeing as the piece was written out of lived experiences, I struggled to find an emotional connection with it at all. Instead I became frustrated at times, and to me I felt as if I was watching a workshop presentation rather than the finished article. The dialogue at times felt laboured and a bit pompous, adding to the emotional disconnect.

Kreis's score is the production's saving grace. When the dialogue stops and the music takes over, particularly in the more stripped back ballads, the show finds a soulful, queer resonance that is deeply moving. But these moments are few and far between and are too often interuppted by tonal shifts that feel jarring rather than revelatory.

ALREADY PERFECT is clearly a deeply personal labour of love, and Kreis's charisma is almost enough to carry it. Yet, for a show that is all about finding clarity amidst the noise, it could benefit from a significant amount of its own editing. It's a showcase for a powerhouse performer that, unfortunately feels like it's still searching for its final form.

In my opinion it's too long, and could easily be condensed. The self-discovery that the protagonist was "already perfect" seems to come very abruptly at the end. It's almost as if the writing suddenly wanted to finish the piece and wraps things up too quickly.

There's definitely room for this production to grow, and there's no denying the talent on the stage, it just feels a bit misguided and rough around the edges. There's certainly work to be done but there are good things here, and oodles of potential.

ALREADY PERFECT plats at the King's Head Theatre until Sunday 15th February. You can book tickets via the venues website.

Neill Kovacic-Clarke

All views are my own and I pride myself on being honest, fair and free from influence. Theatre is subjective and it is important to remember that all views expressed are just those of one person.

My ticket for this performance of Already Perfect was gifted by Kevin Wilson Public Relations who invited me to watch the show in exchange for my honest review. The fact that my ticket was gifted played no part in the content of my review or the star rating given.

CAST LIST:

Levi Kreis as Levi; Killian Thomas Lefevre as Matthew; Yiftach 'Iffy' Mizrahi as Ben

RUNNING TIME (approx):

1 hour 40 minutes, with no interval

CONTENT WARNINGS:

Strong language; Depictions of smoking and drug use; Mature themes

AGE GUIDELINE:

14 +

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