Starlight Express, staged at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, is a musical known for being out of the ordinary, with its actors on roller skates and its stage taking over the entire auditorium, creating an energetic, fast-moving show. Through its set design, colourful lighting that starts the moment you walk into the foyer, and stylised costumes, Starlight Express is a world of its own, tucked away in the expanses of London. 

The set design is one of the most distinctive visual aspects of Starlight Express, with a look you don't ordinarily see. The entire auditorium is transformed into a racetrack, with ramps for them to skate up and down, signal lights throughout the set, and overall a feeling of being on a real (but imaginary) train track. The multi-level design, with the balcony at the top of the bowl, allows for some really interesting dynamics between the performers, which clearly shows who has the power in the situation. And also, occasionally, allows for the more estranged characters to be ostracised from the rest of the show. The industrial aesthetic of the set, with the oil barrels towards the sides, really helps to strengthen the idea that these are in fact mechanical trains. That said, there are cleverly placed wheels on the bottoms of many set pieces, so performers can easily move them offstage, supporting the performance's constant motion. These features really help keep everyone moving, reinforcing the high-speed nature of the performance and the excitement of the races.

Additionally, lighting and costumes play a very important role in shaping the visual style of Starlight Express. The lighting design makes great use of a range of bright colours and moving effects. For example, in AC/DC, a song about the electric train of the future, there is almost always something happening with the lights, whether they’re moving outwards to create a sense of constant movement, or lasers firing off to show that they are futuristic. Another interesting use of lighting is during the races. In each of the ‘carriage’ sections of seating, there is a moving head that rises up so that it can be utilised to create a sense of excitement and intrigue during the races. Along with this, the costumes themselves make heavy use of lighting, with each character having their own individual ‘core light.’ This is their individual emblem, set into a small cylinder, which lights up in their signature colour. This helps showcase them as trains, as rolling stock often have some sort of emblem on them. The light helps solidify each actor as not just a performer but, in fact, a living train. 

The bold designs of the costumes really help to emphasise that a lot of the action taking place in Starlight Express is actually happening in a child -- Control’s -- mind. This is further emphasised by the fact that during the beginning when Control is still awake, the costumes are a lot more realistic and human, with Control wearing striped pyjamas, and his mother wearing a blue dressing gown.

Overall, Starlight Express’s visual design creates a lively and immersive theatrical experience from the get-go. From its bright, colourful lighting, distinctive staging, and bold costume design, the production clearly prioritises spectacle, resulting in a truly visually striking performance that one remembers for a long time.