MARIA DUARTE recommends the true story of the remarkable woman who sued Donald Trump for sexual assault not once, but twice
Latest editorial
Pinocchio perfection
PETER MASON sees a new version of the classic children's story that ticks all the boxes
[Manuel Harlan]
![E Jean Carroll [Pic: Courtesy of Dogwoof]](https://msd11.gn.apc.org/sites/default/files/styles/desktop/public/2026-07/AskEJean_1.jpeg.webp?itok=v-N35HPp)
KENNY MacASKILL is disappointed by a polemical, rather than factual, account of the Lone Star State and its political path since the civil war
PAUL DONOVAN is fascinated by the lives of Charles and Mary Bagot, and the insight this biography shines on the morals of pre-Victorian society
GORDON PARSONS appreciates fine performances and a feel for ambiguity, but misses the music of the dialogue
DOUGLAS FIELD relishes the hard-boiled language, satire and humour of the third and last of the Harlem trilogy
STEPHANIE BROWN draws attention to the hidden labour of the female embroiderers, and how a 19th century replica made no such error
MIK SABIERS revels in a band that ploughs an idiosyncratic furrow of expletive laden, guitar-driven alt rock
Pinocchio
National Theatre, London
BEAUTIFULLY wrought, and spellbinding in its execution, this Pinocchio reverses expectations.
In this version by Dennis Kelly, Pinocchio is played by a real person and some of the human characters, including Pinocchio’s father Geppetto, are represented by huge-headed puppets, each crafted in the spitting image of the actor who holds them aloft and gives them voice.
It’s a clever trick that allows the audience to focus interchangeably on either the puppet or its human embodiment with no loss of effect or drama.
Similar stories
ANGUS REID, ANDY HEDGECOCK and MARIA DUARTE review On The Sea, A Useful Ghost, Brunello: The Gracious Visionary, and Pinocchio Unstrung
GORDON PARSONS appreciates fine performances and a feel for ambiguity, but misses the music of the dialogue
GEORGE FOGARTY is dazzled by a breathtakingly skillful puppet version of Shakespeare’s greatest love poem
MAYER WAKEFIELD is gripped by a production dives rapidly from champagne-quaffing slick to fraying motormouth