Review of ‘Death Note, The Musical’ (2026, Barbican): “Supernatural sung-through thriller has no super or natural writing”

I’m starting to believe that the world may come to an end the day Frank Wildhorn comes up with an original melody. If you don’t believe me, just go through his body of work (which is as extensive as it is derivative) and try to find a single motif he hasn’t borrowed and probably made sound worse. It’s not as bad as it seems, however. As an entertainer, he is still competent. You’ll be amused when you try to identify every musical phrase you’ve heard before — and I guarantee the fun never ends.

Death Note is certainly no exception to the songwriter’s (composer might be too grand a title) track record. And it’s just not the uncanny resemblances we can find in tunes such as We All Need A Hero, which might prompt Maroon 5 to give the guy a call (possibly from a payphone), or the fact that the “Kira, Kira” segment is a near-verbatim replica of Rebecca’s eerie title ballad. No. It’s its stylistic inappropriateness that really baffles me. And his inability to produce anything that comes across as remotely theatrical.

Although the show is based on the acclaimed Japanese manga thriller, there are no references to its provenance whatsoever. Nothing evokes its setting. Not only that, but some sections (too many, actually) sound like scraps from an early draft of Evita. And the only way he can convey mood is through extreme clichés and predictable resources that solidify his legacy as the most generic tunesmith musical theatre has ever endured.

The fact that every number is basically a pop ballad doesn’t help either. And it’s not like his collaborators have done anything to improve the outcome. The lyrics are painfully banal. Its lazy rhymes make every next verse easy to anticipate. And don’t get me started on its failed attempts at wordplay (“I gave you eyes, but you still can’t see”). If we bring into the equation their ineptitude at exploring compelling themes and doing anything more than going over what the dialogue already covered for three, four, or five minutes, it doesn’t take much imagination (even less than Wildhorn’s) to picture how disastrous the writing is.

The story revolves around Light Yagami, a high school student with a stiff sense of justice, who stumbles upon a Death Note, a magical notebook capable of killing those whose names are written on its pages, which has been thrown into the human world by a bored Shinigami (a god of death). What begins as retaliation against law-elusive criminals soon turns into something darker, as Light’s saviour complex and narcissistic traits start to unravel — as he thinks of himself as a master of the universe, who has the right to choose who lives and who doesn’t.

It’s a most gripping, psychological premise that could do exceptionally well as a musical. That is, as long as it’s crafted by someone who, well, understands the craft. This adaptation couldn’t be further from its true potential. It’s exceedingly shallow and dull. And if it weren’t for the production values, which are an absolute triumph, this show wouldn’t stand the slightest chance. To be fair, I still doubt it does.

The songs do not add anything. They are indeed so dispensable that you could disconnect from them entirely and still know what is going on. They don’t advance the plot. Nor do they delve into the characters’ arcs, which are practically nonexistent in this version. They sing just because that’s what people do in musicals, and not because words are not enough to express what they have to say.

In the end, all that we have is a melodramatic story. And it’s not a very good one. The plot is rushed and unengaging. And it’s virtually impossible to feel any emotion for the personages, all of whom are flat and tremendously sketchy. You will see a father crying for the most abhorrent fate a parent could face. And still, you couldn’t react more impassively towards what you’re witnessing. That’s how flawed, clumsy, and clueless the writing is.

The book is clunky at best and amateurish at worst. Every line comes out incredibly unnatural. And none of them exhibits any traces of subtext or subtlety. Similarly, the humour is forced, formulaic, and barely witty — suffice it to say that it isn’t very funny, if not funny at all. And ultimately, it’s just another second-rate ingredient to an overall second-rate concoction.

With so much mediocrity on paper, it’s a refreshing surprise to experience such impeccable staging. Designer Set Bausor builds an eye-blogging universe through a highly dynamic, inventive scenery that effectively balances visual spectacle with abstraction and theatricality. As such, many props are cleverly reused, conferring a sense of variety and multi-functionality.

At the same time, Jen Shriever’s lighting (admittedly, the best we’ve seen across the London scene in recent years) is an explosion of colour, intricacy, and atmospheric qualities, while Akhila Krishnan’s video designs skillfully supplement the practical sets — owning their share of protagonism without ever overtaking the rest of the scenography or acting as a cheap resource.

The same applies to the cast, most of whom perform with magnificent diligence on both a vocal and acting level. Telly Leung teems with humorousness and panache as the playful imp Ryuk, while Xander Pangs fairly owns the stage in the lead role of Light, delivering a somewhat magnetic character and adding a few touches of depth and nuance to an excruciatingly underwritten part. Colin Ryan earns the biggest praise as the enigmatic, eccentric L, whose powerhouse rendition is menacingly captivating.

There’s a reason the manga is beloved worldwide. And there are many reasons why this musical shouldn’t. Condensing a 12-volume manga series into a two-and-a-half-hour piece might not be the wisest idea. But it’s a storyteller’s job to determine the focus. Wistfully, Death Note, The Musical is nothing but a superficial compilation of events with hardly any narrative impact — dramaturgically dead and with a nondescript score as the last nail in the coffin. Justifiably, its criminally bad writing belongs in that journal.

Picture credit to Manuel Harlan.

Death Note plays at London’s Barbican Theatre until 12 September. Tickets are available on the following link.

By Guillermo Nazara