"Talk about topical," said Sarah Hemming in the Financial Times. The Old Vic must have known that Joe Penhall's "riveting new political drama" would be timely when they programmed it; but what were the odds of it opening three weeks before the election... "well, perhaps best not to talk in betting terms right now".
Marking the return to the stage of James Corden as the titular constituent, this "gripping, comic and, ultimately, moving drama" also boasts an assured performance from Anna Maxwell Martin as a hardworking backbench MP – and landing on stage in the midst of a "mudslinging" scandal, it serves as an important reminder that our politicians are human beings who "conduct their work in an increasingly hostile environment".
The play does not have the "brash polemics" of David Hare, nor the sprawling ambition of James Graham, said Arifa Akbar in The Guardian. Rather, this neat three-hander becomes "universal by being so specific", firmly rooted in the theme of "personal safety versus community responsibility".
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As Alec, an ex-soldier who served in Afghanistan and who is now about to lose custody of his children, Corden confirms his status as a "great stage actor", said Tim Bano in The Independent. At first, he's "zippy" and fast-talking; later, he moves to the other end of the "emotional spectrum".
Meanwhile, Maxwell Martin delivers a nuanced turn as his MP (and old classmate) who, in trying to help him, gets pulled into a dangerous situation. The scenes play out in "zinging back-and-forths", but the piece feels schematic and underwritten. It's as if we're seeing "two sides of an argument rather than two fully rounded characters – and not just one argument either, but many and scattershot", covering more than enough issues to fill an edition of "Question Time".
I struggled to believe in the third character, said Clive Davis in The Times – a dim-witted police detective; I felt Corden failed to convey the depth of Alec's anguish, and that Matthew Warchus's staging was a bit lacklustre. All told, the evening suffers from "a distinct lack of fireworks".
At the Old Vic, London, until 10 August
