Critics bow down to King Charles III
© Johan Persson
Theo Bosanquet, WhatsOnStage
★★★★★
"What a brave piece of work this is from Mike Bartlett and director Rupert Goold, fully deserving of its must-see status… they serve up a gripping 'future history' of the Windsors that is nothing short of Shakespearean in scale and operatic in drama… The cast are uniformerly superb, with Tim Piggott-Smith lending a Lear-esque grandeur to the title role… This is the play of the year no doubt. Long live King Charles III."
Dominic Cavendish, Daily Telegraph
★★★★★
"I’d suggest attendance is pretty much compulsory. This is quite the best thing that the playwright Mike Bartlett has done, and for that matter the pioneering director Rupert Goold… Bartlett creates a gripping drama from a hypothetical constitutional crisis… the show has grown in stature and relevance since its April premiere… The cast are uniformly excellent… Pigott-Smith rules the roost, though, giving the understated performance of his career as Charles."
Aleks Sierz, The Stage
★★★★
"Compared with the original production, this staging is faster, funnier and more exciting….Its artistic director, Rupert Goold, is clearly on a roll… Tom Scutt‘s set artfully mimics the back wall of the Almeida while Jocelyn Pook’s music makes a fine contribution to the overall effect… But most important are the actors, who all paint compellingly impressionistic pictures of the people they represent… Tim Piggott-Smith‘s Charles, Oliver Chris‘ William and Lydia Wilson‘s Kate are particularly impressive… Excellent production of Almeida Theatre’s hit triumphantly transfers to the West End."
Fiona Mountford, Evening Standard
★★★★
"It’s worth beating down our uncertainty, for the narrative attains a hurtling momentum… its themes appear more vital than ever… There are confident performances all round in Rupert Goold’s stylish production… This is undoubtedly one of the most stimulating plays of the year."
Sam Marlowe, The Times
★★★★
"Mike Bartlett‘s sharp, audacious drama arrives in the West End at an opportune moment… It’s tartly funny, yet serious-minded, with a shrewd deployment of nimble blank verse and Shakespearean motifs that lends it mischievous playfulness as well as grandeur and gravitas… Pigott-Smith’s performance isn’t reverent, but it is generous… Highly intelligent, and royally entertaining."
