To Kill A Mockingbird
Gielgud Theatre

APPARENTLY when asked if he would write the script for the stage adaptation of To Kill A Mockingbird, Hollywood playwright Aaron Sorkin thought “it would be a death wish.” It’s easy to see why. Harper Lee’s 1960 Pulitzer prize-winning novel tackling racism and injustice is such an enormously popular story — almost sacred in fact — it’s a daunting task for anyone, even an Oscar-winning screenwriter such as Sorkin.

But Sorkin needn’t have worried, he and director Bartlett Sher have managed to create a startling adaptation that not only pays homage to the original text — as well as the equally successful 1962 film — but challenges and criticises the novel’s flaws. Atticus Finch’s white saviour is reproached, muted black characters have voices.       

First staged on Broadway during Trump’s time at the White House, followed by the very public murder of George Floyd, it still feels incredibly timely — a shameful indictment on us today.

Actor Rafe Spall gives an incredibly charismatic performance of Atticus Finch, the small town, respectful lawyer defending Tom Robinson (Jude Owusu), falsely accused of raping a young white woman. Gwyneth Keyworth and Harry Redding are both engaging as siblings Scout and Jem.

Their sweet and naive friend Dill gets the most laughs, an affectionate performance by David Moorst. Pamela Nomvete’s performance of the Finches’ black maid Calpurnia also stands out, perhaps because it’s through her that Finch is forced to address his own white saviour prejudices, something which is noticeably missing from the original text.

However, at nearly three hours long, the production began to feel a little stretched as it concluded — the last few scenes even seemed rushed — there wasn’t much time for the audience to digest the shocking news of Robinson’s fate.

It’s a lavish and well-managed production and as you would expect from anything on at the Gielgud, Miriam Buether’s 1930s Alabama set design is impressive and compact — the size of the stage isn’t huge — as the scene yo-yos comfortably between the Finches’ front porch and the courtroom.

It’s an unmissable play, providing you don’t have to pay an eye-watering price for a ticket.

Until November 19 2022. Box office: 0344 482 5151, www.gielgudtheatre.co.uk