PicksInSix Review: Operation Mincemeat - Broadway in Chicago
“Operation Mincemeat” – Strictly Need-To-Know!
PicksInSix® Review | Ed Tracy
Over three decades ago, a prominent military historian had me enthralled in the telling of the British master plan to outfit a uniformed corpse and set the bloke adrift in the ocean to wash up on shore with bogus invasion plans to hoodwink the Nazi command and divert them away from the intended invasion of Sicily. That plan—coded named “Operation Mincemeat,” the origin of which dates back to a 1939 list of strategic options credited to future James Bond author Ian Fleming, an aide to the British director of naval intelligence at the time—is well-documented in Ben Macintyre’s 2010 book and was the basis for the 2021 film. Then came London’s 2024 Olivier Award-winning Best New Musical followed by the Broadway offering nominated for four 2025 Tony Awards and winning one for featured performance. And it’s still playing everywhere, including the North American Tour of “Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical,” that landed with a big splash at Broadway in Chicago’s CIBC Theatre on Wednesday night.
The musical—a mix of “Hamilton,” and “Monty Python” with a British spin of “Hogan’s Heroes” and much more—could be a royal farce of a send-up to a classic spy thriller if it was not essentially a true story about the 1943 team who had a significant impact on the outcome of World War II. The two British intelligence officers leading the charge–Charles Cholmondeley (Jake Bentley Young) and Ewen Montagu (Katie Kleiger)—developed the plan that was far from perfect, but it worked well enough to give the Allies the decisive edge in the critical invasion of Sicily.
I will admit that I rolled my eyes all those years ago when I first heard about the musical project, but the book, music and lyrics by the team of David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson, and Zoë Roberts is just the kind of madcap show that captures our imagination for adventure and intrigue. Add a clever, non-traditional storyline, lots of comic repartee, and one whiz-bang musical number after another, and “Operation Mincemeat” adds up to a nonstop, highly entertaining, musical comedy with a message that will keep you laughing all night long.
What is truly remarkable is that all of the action is performed by a superb five-member ensemble, with each member portraying a prominent featured role in the developing storyline in addition to playing over 80 characters to flesh out the fascinating story. In addition to Young and Kleiger, the ensemble includes the terrific, multi-talented Luke Antony Neville (Hester Leggatt), Erin Ramirez (Jean Leslie) and Mariah Copeland (Johnny Bevan). To the credit of their combined efforts, all swiftly move the plan’s development along in the backroom of Britain’s Military Intelligence unit (MI5) which is the backdrop for most of the action in the musical. There are some notable departures to add context, and a rousing, slam-bang finish, that add up to a fast-paced serving of humor and pathos.
It’s a rollicking good time right from the top as facts shape the backstory at a critical juncture for the allied war effort. With the successful Allied completion of the African campaign, thr German command turned attention to shoring up forces to defend an invasion of Sicily. As “Mincemeat” unfolds, MI5 operatives create a compelling identity for the man who never was, a past that includes all the conceivable elements of his life, save one, which proves to be a major dramatic turning point of the story and for the operation. What starts out as a fantastical story lands with some mighty emotional weight later on.
Directed with gusto by Robert Hastie, propelled by the clever choreography of Jenny Arnold and a big nod to Ben Stones’s set and extraordinary, ever-changing costume design, “Operation Mincemeat” feels much broader and more complex than you may think that the modest-in-numbers ensemble might be capable of delivering. It’s a workout, to be sure, but this talented group are fun to watch and the story, while staying more or less faithful to the gravity of the piece, is clever and entertaining, even if it’s a plan that is strictly need-to-know.
PHOTO|Matthew Murphy
Broadway in Chicago
presents
NorthAmerican Tour
Operation Mincemeat
A New Musical
CIBC Theatre
18 W Monroe
through October 11, 2026
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