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Over the last few years, the Southwark Playhouse seems to have become the place to go for original and eclectic musicals. The Last Man follows suit: a one-man Korean rock musical about a lone survivor hiding in a bunker beneath the streets of Seoul following the outbreak of a seeming zombie apocalypse. With collaboration from dramaturg Jethro Compton, best known for the remarkable The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, the signs look promising going in.
Playing the role of the Survivor last night was Lex Lee, who seamlessly takes us on his isolation journey with a dynamic performance that walks a difficult line between the character’s initial optimism and good humor and his eventual descent into loneliness and existential reflection on what it means to be human. It is a difficult task, but one that Lee manages with aplomb in a performance full of likability, pathos, and humor. He is also a terrific physical performer, and his shift into the darker elements of the character is especially moving.
“I learned everything about zombies from Train to Busan” is one of many cine-literate movie references that the protagonist makes in a knowingly witty script. We also get references to The Martian, as the Survivor explains how he is growing his own vegetables through compost, helping to keep things comparatively light despite the darkness of the subject matter. There are also some lovely references to Korean culture, most notably in one of the few standout numbers, “That’s Jeong”, where the Survivor sings about a specific form of platonic love and his relationship with his mother.
From a writing perspective, the script is full of coherent and well-explored ideas. However, I found it slightly tonally uneven. Perhaps this mimics the emotional mood shifts of the character, but I wanted the darkness of Act Two to be seeded earlier in the journey, allowing for less tonal whiplash. That being said, the show cleverly uses its sci-fi setting to discuss deeper themes of isolation and the need for human connection in a genuinely affecting way.
The musical element, however, proved to be the show’s weakest aspect. Despite the agreeable orchestrations within Seungyeon Kwon’s rock score, few of the numbers seemed to justify themselves by moving the story along or developing the Survivor’s inner conflict in ways the book scenes did not already achieve. This is a shame, as there is a great deal going on in the show — from the character’s backstory to the supposed zombie crisis unfolding upstairs, not to mention his attempts to contact the outside world — and I found the music often hampered rather than enhanced the storytelling.
Despite its shortcomings, there is a lot to admire, whether it’s Lex Lee’s captivating performance or the immersive design in Shankho Chaudhuri’s set, which gives the bunker a suitably lived-in and dystopian feel that changes alongside the character. I also think the writing has true potential and, much like the main character himself, suggests a stronger presence struggling to break out.
⭐⭐⭐
Written by Alex Farley on behalf of The Theatre Flyer
The Last Man is playing until 13th June 2026
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