A bold, glittery celebration of life and grief that’ll have you laughing, tearing up, and dancing in your seat
It’s not often you go to a show and end up dancing in your seat, nearly crying, and watching someone tap dance in leather — but that’s WAKE for you.
Brought over from Ireland after two sold-out runs in Dublin, WAKE is a mad, messy, joyful celebration of life, death, grief, and everything in between. It’s loud, glittery, full of heart, and really hard to describe — but I’ll give it a go.
The idea behind the show is pretty simple: it’s based on the Irish wake — the traditional gathering after a funeral — but it flips it on its head. Rather than being sombre or overly sentimental, this is a wake that celebrates transformation, change, and connection. It mixes old traditions with club culture, so you’ve got traditional Irish music and céilí dancing one minute, and aerial silks, breakdancing and big anthemic DJ sets the next. It sounds chaotic (and it is a bit), but it somehow works.
Visually it’s stunning. There’s loads going on – aerial performers spinning through the air, gorgeous lighting, someone Riverdancing in full-on clubwear, and even moments of comedy and improv that give it a proper sense of spontaneity. It never stays in one lane for long, which I liked – you never really knew what was coming next.
What really stood out to me though, was how it handled the heavier themes. Even with all the madness, it still finds space to talk about grief, love, chosen family, and identity. It’s got this strong emotional core that gives the whole thing meaning, and you can tell how much care has gone into creating something that feels genuinely inclusive and heartfelt. It’s definitely got a queer spirit running through it, and there’s a real sense of joy and freedom in how it all comes together.
There’s also moments of audience interaction — not in a cringey way, but in a way that makes you feel like you’re part of something. It doesn’t feel like performers up there and audience down here — it’s more like a shared experience, which I suppose is very in keeping with the whole “wake” theme. Community, connection, all of that.
The cast were honestly brilliant. Such a mix of skills — dancers, musicians, poets, acrobats — all clearly giving it their all, and the energy didn’t dip once. The live music was gorgeous too, from the more stripped-back folk moments to the full-on ravey bits that had the whole theatre buzzing. I’ve genuinely not seen a show quite like it.
If I’m being picky, the first few minutes really caught me off guard — not because they were over the top, but because they were unexpectedly sombre. It was actually the saddest part of the show. Quiet, reflective, and heavy with grief, it felt like a proper funeral moment — that raw, gut-punch feeling of loss before anything else. But as the show went on, that sadness slowly started to lift. Bit by bit, it shifted into something more joyful and celebratory, which made the whole journey feel really moving and real. It mirrored how grief can change shape over time — never fully gone, but softened by connection and joy.
Overall, WAKE is one of those shows that doesn’t try to be neat or polished — and that’s kind of the point. It’s about messiness, chaos, celebration, and the weird beauty that comes with all of that. You come out of it feeling uplifted, moved, and weirdly grateful to be alive. Which, for a show about death, is kind of perfect.
If you’re after something a bit different — bold, big-hearted, and properly fun — this one’s worth catching.