Thor the Walrus – Omnibus Theatre, London

Thor the Walrus takes a satirical approach to inaction over the climate emergency, by charting the voyage of one hungry walrus to English shores.

Thor the Walrus

“How could I resist a climate change walrus comedy?” I said.  And it’s true, Thor the Walrus is pretty irresistible.  On at Clapham’s Omnibus Theatre for a short visit ahead of an Edinburgh Fringe run, Thor the Walrus uses humour to probe a topic of great urgency.  Is it going to save the world?  I shouldn’t think so.  But it’s something, and in raising awareness writer and director Claire Watt helps more than most of us do.

Most of the time the Salterton Arts Review is a climate emergency ostrich.  Despite a decent education, relative privilege and a bit of a platform, the reality of what faces us is too scary for me most of the time.  I’m not the only one to face this action paralysis.  So I was intrigued to see whether this novel approach to issue-led theatre would break through my defences.

I saw a comparison to South Park on the Omnibus Theatre website.  The analogy is a good one. Like South Park, Thor the Walrus uses satire, parody and humour to educate, make serious points, and have fun.  (There’s another reference to Brass Eye but I arrived in the UK too late to do the comparison there).  The serious points here are of course climate related.  It prompts us to think about where we get our climate news from and who pays for/influences the messages.  There’s a bit about the limits of party politics. Plenty, of course, about the way consumers are made to feel guilty about our own climate failures while there is little pressure on the real offenders, both corporate and 1%. And finally an educational piece about greenwashing.

A Sort of True Story

All this serious material is sprinkled through Thor’s (Tom Lafferty) journey to civilisation, to find out what’s happened to all the clams and ice in his Arctic home.  Aiming for Norway, he reaches England instead (it’s based loosely on the real Thor who visited Scarborough in 2022).  ‘Climate News’ journalists played by Olivia Rainbow and Tom Terry keep us updated on his progress, as well as the ever-present threat that Thor might go the way of fellow real life walrus voyager Freya. 

Few, if any, of the people Thor meets along the way have any answers to give him about the climate crisis.  Let alone what to do about it.  Thor takes drugs, becomes a politician, and – well, I won’t ruin the whole thing for you.  It is a lot of fun.  Alex John and Noelle Sacher play the various characters Thor meets, with Rainbow or Terry doing double duty on a few occasions.

I enjoyed Thor the Walrus precisely because it doesn’t take itself too seriously.  It’s full of physical comedy, puns and funny costumes.  It’s very energetic for the cast, particularly John and Sacher who have to race off for costume changes between bits.  But the point is that the comedy is gentle ground to urge action while explaining how the game, for individuals, is rigged.  Will this climate change ostrich summon the courage to peep above the sand? Perhaps.

There are a few limits to the format too.  It has a fringe theatre flavour, by which I mean making do on a restricted budget.  This isn’t too much of a limitation really, as its in keeping with the parody humour.  What was actually more of a shame for me and the seat I chose is that Thor spends most of his time on the ground as a good walrus should: depending on where it plays in Edinburgh I recommend a front row seat for the best sight lines.

So get along and see it.  Whether you’re already a climate change warrior posting on Instagram 24/7 while singing S Club 7 (just one of many references you will get if you go see it), or have had your head in the sand like me, Thor the Walrus is a sweet and funny envelope for an urgent message

Salterton Arts Review’s rating: 3/5

Thor the Walrus played on two dates at Omnibus Theatre, Clapham, ahead of an Edinburgh Fringe run from 2-25 August. More info here.