All the World Is Staged?

If you watched the mini-series Good Omens, you're aware of the marvelous chemistry between David Tennant and Michael Sheen. (Side note: I went to go link to my past review of Good Omens... only to discover I never wrote one! Suffice it to say, it's a joy!) Sheen and Tennant seem to have genuinely enjoyed working together, as they've now done it again in a new project: Staged.

Staged is an unusual half-hour comedy trying to salvage something good from the mess that is 2020. Co-created by writer-director Simon Evans, it's the story of Simon Evans trying to wrangle temperamental actors David Tennant and Michael Sheen into rehearsing for his next theater production. The idea is that when the pandemic is over and theaters reopen, they can be first to mount a new show because they've done their rehearsals online via Zoom in preparation. But really, the whole endeavor ambles along as a curiosity, born of a lack of anything better to do.

There's a bit of a magic trick at work in Staged, in that it's watchable, much less good. I know how I felt to hear the premise -- it sounded "too soon," "too real," "too serious" to me. Do I really want to watch a show about everyone being cloistered in their houses, doing their best to get by? I'm living that! And yet, that great rapport between Tennant and Sheen that made Good Omens so fun is back in full force here.

Also, there seems to be a looseness to the entire show that serves it well. It's either partially improvised around the outline of a script, or so convincingly acted as to feel completely natural and improvisational. Jokes build from episode to episode. Fun guest stars turn up to help the show feel bigger than you'd think, even though we're only seeing a handful of Zoom windows.

The show seems to have struck a chord, as the BBC has recently renewed it for a second run of episodes. (Sadly, the pandemic continued long enough to support more episodes of "everyone is stuck at home.") Alright, sure, the less charitable interpretation would be that it's hard to produce any new original content right now, but they can make this. But this is surprisingly fun, and not too bad under the circumstances.

Is it essential viewing? No, probably not. But if you liked Good Omens, chances are quite high you'll like this. (And if you haven't seen Good Omens? Well, watch that, then watch this.) I'd give Staged a B. Its six breezy 20-minute episodes are not a bad way to pass this time at home.