Yeast Nation, Southwark Playhouse
"A story of evolution beyond Charles Darwin’s wildest dreams, Yeast Nation is a bio-historical musical that is revolutionary in more than one sense of the word...Everything about this show is phenomenal, the score in particular. Although I have tried, words cannot fully describe what takes place on the stage of the Southwark Playhouse." - Broadwaybaby ★★★★★
"Best known for Urinetown, another surprising show tackling class and dwindling resources, Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis are Tony Award winners with a talent for providing killer laughs, clever lyricism and impressive musical numbers. They deliver the same here in this high-concept piece deftly handled by director Benji Sperring, who clearly understands the rhythms of comedy and juices every ounce of possibility out of the material." - A Youngish Perspective ★★★★
"This is what I want to see in new musical theatre writing – it’s inventive, risk-taking, audacious, and at least not another remake of a movie." - Musical Theatre Review ★★★★
A Killer Party, Online Release
"The incredible cast, directed by Benji Sperring, complement the musical with over-the-top theatrical performances, totally in keeping with the overall aesthetic, and funny as hell...Totally silly, totally catchy, totally riveting." - A Younger Theatre ★★★★★
"Director Benji Sperring has ensured the energy is consistent throughout, while making full use of the technology available" - Love London Love Culture ★★★★★
"Recorded by an isolated cast, and spliced together ingeniously by Benji Sperring...If you can’t bear the wait for those real-world West End musicals looming on the horizon, A Killer Party could be just your ticket." - The Guardian ★★★★
Musical Theatre Review ★★★★★, Fairy Powered Productions ★★★★★ , West End Best Friend ★★★★★ , The Stage ★★★★, LondonTheatre1 ★★★★ , The Reviews Hub ★★★★ , Sardines Magazine ★★★★ , All That Dazzles ★★★★ , Musical Theatre Musings ★★★★
An Act Of God, Vaults Theatre
"Lyons is diabolically glorious, delectably sacrilegious and oh-so-cutting in Her humour under Benji Sperring's direction" - Broadwayworld ★★★★★
"A riot from start to finish, 'An Act of God' is wickedly funny with brilliant one liners, excellent observations and some neat magic tricks. A devilishly good show, it’s just what we need to lift our spirits during the dark winter months" - From Page To Stage ★★★★
"Jokey, camp, silly and it includes a climactic visual effect so stunning that many in the departing audience were inspecting the stage to work out how it could have been done" - Mark Lawson, The Tablet
London Living Large ★★★★★, QX Magazine ★★★★, Upper Circle ★★★★, London Box Office ★★★★, Reviewsgate ★★★★, Love London Love Culture ★★★★, The Review Chap ★★★★, Boyz Magazine ★★★★, London Theatre Reviews ★★★★, The Weekender ★★★★
Night Of The Living Dead - Live, Pleasance Theatre
"A hilarious, creepy, loving tribute...Fans of the original film, horror and comedy will love this play, it hits all the right notes." - West End Wilma ★★★★★
"This is cult theatre perfectly crafted" - The Upcoming ★★★★★
"All this slapstick, constant resetting and role sharing makes this production technically very challenging, but director Benji Sperring has made it look effortless. Each scene transitions to the next with a swiftness that defies what should be possible, creating a little movie magic live on stage." - Theatre Weekly ★★★★
Sci-Fi Bulletin ★★★★★, Starburst Magazine ★★★★★, The Reviews Hub ★★★★★, A Younger Theatre ★★★★, Live For Films ★★★★, Jonathan Baz ★★★★, Mail on Sunday ★★★★
Toxic Avenger The Musical, Arts Theatre and Southwark Playhouse
“Taking his cue from the film’s aesthetic, director Benji Sperring gives us campy charm by the bucket load. In the wrong hands, camp can feel clumsy, but Sperring’s direction is so slick and witty, his cast so impossibly talented, that we’re able to delight in the farce and knowing winks, confident that everything’s firmly under control.” – Lucinda Everett, The Telegraph ★★★★★
“This is a show with its tongue firmly in its green, goo-filled cheek. From the moment it begins…this musical is all about the laughs. And in Benji Sperring's excellent production they really deliver.” – Daisy Bower-Sell, Whatsonstage ★★★★
Daily Express ★★★★★, Radio Times ★★★★, Time Out ★★★★, Broadwaybaby ★★★★★, Edinburgh Evening News ★★★★★★, Theatre Weekly ★★★★★
Shock Treatment, Kings Head Theatre
“Yet Benji Sperring’s production has an infectious, loopy energy (not to mention lashings of nudge nudge, homoerotic jokes) that nicely serves the giddy mayhem of the plot.” – Claire Allfree, The Telegraph
“Director Benji Sperring’s fizzing, risk-taking production more than makes up for any shortcomings” – Stewart Pringle, Time Out ★★★★★
The Times ★★★★, WestEndWilma ★★★★★, Whatsonstage ★★★★, The Stage ★★★★, Everythingtheatre ★★★★★, Musical Theatre Review ★★★★
Hamilton (Lewis), Edinburgh Festival then Kings Head Theatre
“A top-notch performance in Benji Sperring’s happy, harmonious production.” – Mark Fisher, The Guardian
“You can’t help being won over by this new show’s irreverent humour, skilful staging and strong performances” Mark Ludman, British Theatre Guide ★★★★
Broadwayworld ★★★★, Musical Theatre Musings ★★★★★, London Theatre ★★★★
Liver Birds The Musical, Royal Court Liverpool
“This has to be one of the most surprising shows on the Royal Court programme in some time. Subtle, engaging and moving in all the right places, the sitcom source material is neither here nor there once the story sucks you in. You’ll be rooting for every single soul on that stage.” – Jamie McCloughlin, Liverpool Echo ★★★★★
“Director Benji Sperring interleaves the older women’s story – mostly one of disappointment and regret – with that of their younger, more innocent selves on Mark Walters’s evocative split-level set.” – Veronica Lee, The Telegraph ★★★★
Northwestend ★★★★, The Independent ★★★, The Guardian ★★★
How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, Wilton’s Music Hall
“There is more wit than we are used to in modern musicals…Benji Sperring’s revival makes the most of modest resources” – Michael Billington, The Guardian ★★★
“The makings of a real winner…I can’t altogether decry a venture delivered with such fresh-faced zest” – Dominic Cavendish, The Telegraph ★★★ Everythingtheatre ★★★★★, Timeout ★★★★, The Upcoming ★★★★
The Stripper, St James Theatre
“Director Benji Sperring has done a marvellous job of utilising the small space the St James Studio provides; the theatre is set up like a bar, supporting an immersive experience.” – Luisa Kapp, The Upcoming ★★★★★
“Hot off the back of his fantastically received production of The Toxic Avenger, Benji Sperring’s direction is fast, efficient and very funny, making full use of the limited space of the studio.” – Ben Powell, London Theatre ★★★★★
WestEndWilma ★★★★, A Younger Theatre ★★★★, Broadwayworld ★★★★
The Immortal Hour, Finborough Theatre
“A brave and intriguing revival…tantalising” – Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph ★★★★
“An adventurous smaller-scale company…[with] an enterprising staging of Rutland Boughton’s The Immortal Hour” Hugo Shirley, The Spectator
★★★★ Everything Theatre ★★★★, The Upcoming ★★★★, British Theatre Guide ★★★★
The Blind and The Intruder, Old Red Lion Theatre (and Tabard Theatre)
“It is the images I shall remember from Benji Sperring’s production: vividly designed by Jacob Hughes…this revival is a fascinating collector’s item” – Michael Billington, The Guardian ★★★
“Tarquin Productions allow a unique look at Maeterlinck’s varied treatment of a single motif. This is connoisseur’s theatre at its best, a capsule presentation of work from a playwright who is himself still shrouded in darkness.” – Alicia Luba, The Telegraph ★★★★★
Valley of Song, Finborough Theatre
“It’s no easy thing to mount a musical on a shoestring – and thanks to a downstairs refurbishment, London’s Finborough is something of a no-man’s-land at the moment. Yet arriving at the ideal juncture of the Great War commemorations, Benji Sperring’s premiere puts the case commendably well for an oldfashioned show that’s hugely nostalgic even by Novello’s standards.” – Dominic Cavendish, The Telegraph