The Marriage of Kim K, with lyrics by Leo Mercer and music by Stephen Hyde (or leoehyde, as they are collectively known) takes inspiration from the modern phenomenon of the 72-day marriage of Kim Kardashian (played by Yasemin Mireille) to NBA player Kris Humphries (played by James Edge), while adapting parts of Mozart’s famed Il nozze di Figaro to play out alongside.

The main story follows a central couple, lawyer Amelia and composer Stephen (played by Amelia Gabriel and Hyde) whose relationship begins reflect their televisual obsessions. This unusual turn of events soon reveals the disparity in their personalities to the potential detriment of their marriage.

The concept of this pop opera/musical is sound and has the potential to be incredibly satisfying in its realisation, with pop culture references and styles littered between classical adaptation but unfortunately this production doesn’t entirely fulfil that potential.

The blend of pop musical styles and opera has promise and the repetition of the “2GETHA 4EVA!” song (written by leoehyde, not the 2008 hip hop hit by Trick Trick) brings together the narrative, however in ensemble songs the lyrical layering is done in such a way that makes it hard for an audience to keep up with the different narrative strands and, ultimately, we lose the plot.

Epping Forest Guardian:

Mozart regularly layered different lyrics on top of one another such as in the famed quintet in The Magic Flute, which is evidently the aim of this particular production through the blending of musical styles and narratives.

However it is somewhat overused in The Marriage of Kim K to the extent that some sweeter moments are lost in a wall of sound.

An interval could have alleviated this sense of bombardment, with the 90 minutes running on with no break.

Within the narrative there are attempts at parody and satire which feel slightly shoehorned, however some funny moments, particularly from the Mozart performers (Emily Burnett and Nathan Bellis) and Edge’s Kris Humphries did bring out a good reaction in the audience.

The performers each did well with what they had to work with and are clearly vocally talented, with particular mention to the opera singers, Burnett, Bellis and Edge.

The sets were well formed and the tension in the protagonists’ marriage was well reflected in the staging, seeing the two move into the sets of their favourite shows as a visual representation of their arguments, before they choose to understand one another better and communicate, thus crossing over and exploring the different sets together.

Overall this production needs further finesse and some edits made (perhaps also the introduction of a short interval) before it hits the stage at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, but the bones of something interesting are among what was found at the Arcola.

The Marriage of Kim K, Arcola Theatre, 24 Ashwin Street, Dalston, London, E8 3DL. Runs until July 29.