Review Round-Up: THE MISANTHROPE at the National Theatre

What are theatre critics saying about The Misanthrope?

London Box Office

“Sandra Oh on flying form and displaying considerable stage acting chops in her National Theatre debut”

★★★

Reviewer: Stuart King

"The production designed by the always excellent Robert Jones, looks utterly ravishing on the Lyttelton stage, and it would be fair to say that NT director Indhu Rubasingham has conjured something which is kinda Molière, but not quite as we have known him — the question is, does this represent an improvement? The play begins as a thoroughly marvellous battle of words and sensibilities between novelist Alice (Sandra Oh on flying form and displaying considerable stage acting chops in her National Theatre debut) and her close friend John (the ever dependable Paul Chahidi)."

Read the review here.

Time Out

“A chore at times but star Sandra Oh plus some good jokes and a wild ending see it through”

★★★

Reviewer: Andrzej Lukowski

"It’s a frustration, then, that Crimp never makes that much of this. His text has lots of enjoyable characters and some very fun barbs about the modern entertainment world, especially – via John – contemporary theatre (a Simon Stone-alike director is roundly mocked). But the slightly sloggy relationship drama between Alice and Stefan feels like it devours most of the time and while this is to be fair relatively close to what happens in the original, Crimp muddies the waters over whether Stefan is cheating on Alice to the point the narrative becomes frustratingly blurred. It also feels like there’s a bit of timidity here - Alice is in hot water via a vis a prestigious German literary prize, whose panel want Alice to apologise for previous comments before accepting. But it feels like it sells Alice short by being determinedly vague about what the comments actually were - not telling us makes the character blander."

Read the review here.

WhatsOnStage

“Full of interesting ideas and fine effects, but not quite enough bite or fury”

★★★

Reviewer: Sarah Crompton

"The point about Alceste (or Alice here) is that he/she is both correct in the analysis of the corrupt state of society, but also deeply human (she’s in love with an ex-addict, vain and conceited film star Stefan) and often ridiculous. Oh can’t quite find that range. She is affecting at moments and hilarious at others, but sometimes her characterisation doesn’t cut through. Her low-key presence means she sometimes vanishes from scenes in which she should be the centre. She isn’t helped by Crimp’s adaptation that (unlike his astonishing Cyrano de Bergerac in the West End six years ago) is blurred at times in its wit and intent. The transformation of characters into an agent, a publicist, a female conductor, and an online image manipulator (and hacker) makes smart points about the world today, but introduces too many hares of attack. Often, Alice feels less like the scourge of a society gone to rot and more like a dispassionate analyst."

Read the review here.

The Guardian

“Sandra Oh brings riveting heart and fire to over-stuffed Molière update”

★★★

Reviewer: Arifa Akbar

"The satirical elements are hard to anchor. Who is being satirised and why? The production seems to send up everyone from gen Zers who speak about their authentic selves to women who rail against misogyny, the latter mainly through Alice. She is angry, we hear, again and again, and an uncompromising paragon of truth who takes the mission of truth-telling online with outspoken social media posts. But is she also a sanctimonious prig that Alceste arguably doubles up as in Molière’s play? And the comedy of manners butts up against the human drama, from the distrust Alice feels in her relationship to the acrimony between Stefan and his ex-wife (Jemima Rooper) and tenderness between Alice and her best friend, John (Paul Chahidi). In these scenes, the play flies, and the return of the comedy feels like an interruption. In the best dramatic moments it contains some riveting acting from Oh, who brings heart, fire, vulnerability and comic timing."

Read the review here.

Sandra Oh (Alice) and Tom Mison (Stefan) in The Misanthrope at the National Theatre, Photo by Marc Brenner.

The Standard

“Sandra Oh kills it in an updated, mixed-bag Molière.”

★★★

Reviewer: Nick Curtis

"This is Crimp’s second, freewheeling swing at Molière’s play (he did a previous version in 1996). He writes wonderfully for actors: there’s a long speech for Rina Fatania’s press agent Indira that rises then falls from a central yelp; and overlapping speeches by Alice and Stefan illustrate that they don’t really see or hear each other. Rhyming couplets can trap actors in a diddly-dee-diddly-dum rut but Oh and Chahidi bring relish and nuance to the wordplay. Too many scenes feature two people arguing, and many of them end abruptly. Crimp’s play and Rubasingham’s production are half in love with the rarefied world they are satirising. There are too many knowing asides for the cognoscenti, too many debates about the importance of writing."

Read the review here.

The Independent

“Sandra Oh’s London stage debut could have been, should have been, so much better”

★★★

Reviewer: Annabel Nugent

"Oh is apt enough at the protesting and proclaiming and denouncing and ranting that her role requires, but the actor is best in the play’s quieter moments, her fangs retracted and her soft underbelly exposed, as she agonises over Stefan’s fidelity or is actually sincerely sweet with John. It’s a shame these moments are so few and far between. The supporting cast do well to hold their own; Rina Fatania gets a load of laughs as Stefan’s irritating publicist, with a breathless monologue about image rehabilitation in the social media age. Being an alcoholic can actually be an asset if you know how to spin it! Fans of Killing Eve and Grey’s Anatomy will undoubtedly flock to the National for the chance to see Oh up close and personal. And certainly in moments, that devotion will be rewarded, but on the whole you’d hope for a more robust vehicle for the Canadian star as she makes her London stage debut."

Read the review here.

The Telegraph

“Sandra Oh is let down by the National’s gender-flipped Misanthrope.”

★★★

Reviewer: Dominic Cavendish

"Had Crimp made this free-speech fundamentalist more outspoken – someone in the mould of JK Rowling or Lionel Shriver – he’d have upped the danger levels. Not only does the topicality feel safe and the jeopardy minimal, but Alice herself – the coolest, most collected person in the room – feels curiously incidental. Molière crafted a bilious dissenter; instead we get a level-headed diagnostician. It too often feels like there’s an Oh-shaped hole in the production. The supporting performances are accomplished, with especially enjoyable work from Paul Chahidi as Alice’s gay playwright pal, and Rina Fatania as her insufferable reputation manager. But they crowd out the star attraction. The star strives to show us what she can do – eyes sealed in pent-up frustration, sorrow lurking in her insouciance. But she’s never really scary, and never makes us care, fully. Not her fault: she’s subject to killing even-handedness."

Read the review here.

If you love seeing celebrities take to the stage, check out our list of All the Celebrities You Can See Onstage This Year. Pride Month may almost be over, but there are still plenty of queer-themed shows you can watch in the West End and beyond this year - check out this list of the Best Theatre Shows to Watch for Pride Month.

The Misanthrope Tickets