The Curious Incident of the dog – Just awe-inspiring.

Every so often (if I am are truly lucky) I get to experience a piece of theatre that leaves me totally awestruck. Last night, at Birmingham’s stunning Rep Theatre,  was just one of the those nights. The Melting Pot and Birmingham Rep’s latest production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, a play based on the novel by Mark Haddon, is one of the most astounding pieces of theatre I have ever watched. With a star-making central performance by the astonishing Alex Keenan, and an ensemble cast that would be hard to beat, I left the theatre both laughing and crying about what I had watched.

The plot

This version of the play is centred around a 15 year old girl Chris who is neurodivergant. Chris Boone is a gifted mathematician living with her father in Swindon. She goes to a special school where she has a rewarding relationship with her teacher Siobhan (the warm and lovely Bridgette Amofah.). One night Chris stumbles upon the body of his neighbour Mrs Shears dog. It is mistakenly thought that Chris has killed the dog, and after she attacks a policeman for placing hands on her (Chris has a real phobia about human contact), Chris decides she needs to play detective and find out who really killed the dog. This sets her on a path that reveals a lot of ‘skeletons in the cupboard’ about her own family. (She would really hate me using that phrase in my review – Chris is nothing if not literal.)

The Cast

In the central role Alex Keenan breathes life into the complex character that is Chris. Virtually on stage for the whole of the play, she is, by turns, hilariously funny, euphorically excitable (explaining why she would be a great astronaut is a high point, and totally heart-breaking as she shirks from every loving contact from the people who love him most. A gentle character at heart, innocent and incapable of lying, Chris is shown to be capable of acts of violence directed at those who want to protect her. It is an astounding performance that cannot be applauded highly enough.

As her parents, Ed and Judy, Joe McFadden and Charlie Brooks are both great. Joe makes your heart despair for Ed, particularly in the emotional scene when Chris finds her mother’s letters, the tenderness and love for the daughter she tried to protect is there for all to see. Charlie Brooks is quite brilliant as Judy, a glamorous memory on the beach for her daughter, but, in reality, a mother pushed to despair and abandonment by the child she loved but could no longer cope with. The scene where the 44 letters are revealed, and the letter detailing her affair is read is one of the most powerful of the whole play.

There are so many other things that need mentioning, not least of which is the set. The use of graphics to highlight things like the Tube, and bouncy balls to indicate a wet station floor are clever and innovative, you genuinely feel like you are in London, or traveling on a tube. But there is also an erratic element of confusion tied in which makes everything appear as it would through Chris’s eyes. The ensemble cast are all fantastic and, at times, they also double as ‘the set’, especially in the amazing wet floor scene.The Curious incident of the Dog in the Night-time is a masterpiece of modern theatre.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time runs at the Rep until Saturday 19th September, ahead of a UK tour. click here for ticket information and booking.

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