Review: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Birmingham Rep / UK Tour)
Review by Raphael Kohn
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Of the fair few smash-hit successes the National Theatre has had, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is one of their most notable, having had multiple tours, international runs, and based off a book which gained worldwide acclaim. But surely one of the most important markers of success for a play is not the triumph of the original run, but the potential the play has for reinterpretation and revival? If so, then Curious Incident is well on its way to proving itself a modern classic, in a thrilling new production, premiering at the Birmingham Rep theatre before heading off on a national tour.
There’s a good reason that Curious Incident has the popularity it’s gained over the years. Part murder mystery, part coming-of-age tale and part exploration of the difficulties neurodiverse individuals face in society, it has just a little bit of something for everyone. Following Chris Boone as she sets out to find the killer of her neighbour’s dog, things take dark and unexpected turns as Chris discovers new things about her family and herself, while also grappling with trying to navigate the world more independently as an autistic (or at least autistic-coded) teenager.
But this is not the original Curious Incident – not the book, nor the original production of the play. Rather, this is the Birmingham Rep theatre and Melting Pot productions’ co-produced new version. It looks and feels it. Most obviously, there’s one major change at play here, in the gender-swapping of its lead character from ‘Christopher’ in the original to simply ‘Chris’. But there’s also a tonal shift in this modernisation, more sympathetic to the plight of neurodiverse individuals who society fails to accommodate, and taking their difficulties seriously.
There’s also something special, though, in the recasting of Chris as a girl. In a time where autism is so frequently stereotyped as ‘difficult young boys’, with girls with autism so frequently overlooked and underdiagnosed, it feels silently radical to retell this story with an autistic girl at the centre. In her professional debut, Alex Keenan plays Chris, utterly endearing from start to finish and with a magnetic stage presence. This isn’t a one-dimensional Chris, stereotyped as a savant with a talent for maths and an inability to understand others; Keenan’s Chris is deeply thought-out and thoroughly rootable.
The world around Chris is overwhelming, chaotic, and incomprehensible. Chris avoids human touch, eye contact, and frequently misses social cues. But while this production of Curious Incident wants us to see the world through Chris’ eyes and empathise, it also doesn’t fall into the trap of making heavy-handed pleas to its audiences to be more accommodating or lame appeals. Rather, there’s a great deal of showing, rather than telling, that amplifies the message far more than any direct reference could.
To that end, director Ned Bennett has gone all-out on a rather expressionistic production, full to the brim with bold stylistic choices and creative ideas. Visually and aurally overstimulating at times while calmly diminished at others, the tension rises and falls rapidly to really emphasise the distress caused by sensory overload. There’s remarkable creative harmony at play, with all elements of lighting, projection, sound, movement, and staging working together in excellent synergy.
The story is played out over Eleanor Bull’s blank stage, a white canvas to set things out on. Unfortunately, while the concept behind it is exciting, the execution falls flat slightly, with the action taking place on a minimal selection of roughly-assembled setpieces which sadly don’t do the creative vision justice. Bull drapes the sides of the set in PVC curtains – potentially effective choices for the future tour venues, but in the wide stage of the Birmingham Rep makes the backstage areas and performers waiting to walk onstage distractingly visible. I hate to say it, but I expected a little more design-wise, especially after the Birmingham Rep’s recent visually spectacular Sweeney Todd on the very same stage.
Thankfully though, the blank slate it creates is a perfect canvas for Laura Deward’s bold and exciting lighting choices, conjuring up locations and ideas through an ever-changing mix. The back wall of the stage becomes a screen for Hayley Egan’s projections, which are generally a humorous and exciting selection of quick-fire visual gags and clues, although some of them don’t quite reach the creative heights of others. But when this all comes together, paired with Giles Thomas’ vibrant soundscape and Jennifer Jackson’s audacious movement direction, the creative culmination is striking.
When the stage is bare, however, Bennett leaves it to the actors to fill the gaps. Mostly, that works, largely down to the talents of the cast. Starring alongside Keenan’s Chris who barely leaves the stage at any point is an excellent collection of actors. Charlie Brooks (as Judy Boone) and Joe McFadden (as Ed Boone) are the most publicised, starring on the posters and programmes, and that’s for good reason – they’re remarkable. Both give heartfelt performances which most impressively lean fully into the moral grey areas of their characters.
McFadden probably has the harder job there with a character whose faults we fully see with our own eyes. It would be easy to just play Ed as a culpable, unsympathetic father who fails to understand and properly support his daughter, but McFadden builds extensive moral complexity into his portrayal and goes far beyond stereotypes and single dimensions. As Judy, Charlie Brooks is full of anxiety, far more knowing of her own flaws and yet heartbreakingly unable to fully overcome them. The two of them are a remarkable pair.
The rest of the story is told by an ensemble of multi-roling actors, undertaking lightning-fast costume changes from Adidas tracksuits, to police officers, to all of the surrounding residents of Swindon and London. Bridgitte Amoafah is particularly impressive as Chris’ teacher, Siobhan, and the narrator of the play, but the entire ensemble of seven players are a tight and meticulous troupe with no weak links in sight.
It all makes for a rather impressive regional revival of Curious Incident, and one which I have no doubts will impress audiences across the land as it heads out on tour. The few creative drawbacks it has are part and parcel of the risks you have to take when making bold creative choices, and I for one am glad that the risks are being taken in the first place. Ultimately, it’s an electrifying theatrical experience that’s riveting from start to finish – and there’s little else you need than that.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time plays at Birmingham Rep until 18th September, then tours the UK until 29th May 2027. Tickets for all dates from https://curiousonstage.co.uk/
Photos by Johan Persson