ALAN McGUIRE welcomes a biography of the French semiologist and philosopher
Flaws undermine case for the defence
MAYER WAKEFIELD witnesses a powerful Isis courtroom drama marred by stereotyped characterisations
[Pete le May] 
ALEX HALL is frustrated by a book that ducks a clear definition of terrorism and fails to perceive the role of the state in sponsoring it
JOE GILL wholeheartedly recommends an eloquent manifesto: how to change the world one local project at a time
Inspired by a photograph, a unique memorial in Michigan immortalises US true labour heroes. MICHAL BONCZA recalls a great story rarely told
MARIA DUARTE, LEO BOIX and ANGUS REID review Brides, Dead of Winter, A Night Like This, and The Librarians
MARIA DUARTE is entertained by a wry portrait of befuddled resistance to US authoritarianism
Faceless
Park Theatre, London
“AMERICA wants blood,” proclaims Federal Prosecutor Scott Bader in Faceless. The blood it's after is that of the supposedly studious Susie Glenn who's been seduced into travelling to Syria to join Isis by her virtual boyfriend.
“How 2015,” I hear you say, and it's true that it seems a long time ago that Isis teenage recruits were dominating the headlines. Luckily, Selina Fillinger's debut play has enough depth to keep it on track in 2018, but it’s not without some major flaws.
Largely a courtroom drama, the five-hander is undoubtedly at its best when it's on legal terrain. The relationship between the slippery misogynist Bader (Matt Mella) and his chosen “face of the prosecution” Claire Fathi (Paige Round, pictured) entices. Harvard-educated, hijab-wearing and of French-Iranian heritage, Fathi is razor-sharp and easily the most well-rounded character in the show.
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MAYER WAKEFIELD is swept up by the tale of the south London venue where music forged alliances across race, class and identity
MAYER WAKEFIELD applauds Rosamund Pike’s punchy and tragic portrayal of a multi-tasking mother and high court judge
