Writer: Oscar Wilde

Adaptor and director: Cecilia Thoden van Velzen

Star rating: 3.5

This play is a theatrical curiosity. It was Oscar Wilde’s first play, first staged in 1883, when it flopped. This is the first London revival.

It tells the story of Vera Sabouroff, who leads the Nihilists to the murder of the Tsar, Ivan, initially because she is incensed at the cruel imprisonment of her brother. It is loosely based on the life of Vera Zasulich (1849-1919), although the play is set earlier.

Wilde is trying to interrogate the nature of democracy in conflict with totalitarianism, which is, of course, as topical now as it was 142 years ago. And he was adamant that, political cynicism notwithstanding, this is a serious play and not a comedy, although there are some witty Wildean aphorisms in this text. And “I’d not intended to die” as the Prime Minister’s last words feels more like panto than tragedy.

The language style is peculiar too, although it’s not clear whether this is down to Wilde or to Cecilia Thoden van Velzen’s adaptation. It rattles along in modern English, interspersed with awkward Elizabethan borrowings such as “Methinks…”, “Wherein are they different from us?”, “You shall not escape vengeance” or “I loved him not”.

Ruth Varela’s simple but effective set consists of five white triangular screens moved into various positions and configurations as walls or towers. When George Airey (very good), as the new Tsar, produces a white crown and offers it to Vera (Natasha Culzac), with whom he has complicated history, the shape mirrors the set. It’s ingenious cross-referencing. All weapons are made of white paper, too.

The best thing about this show is the quality of the acting. All seven actors are strong, with especially noteworthy work from Jonathan Hansler as the autocratic Tsar who is sick, stumbling, trembling and ruthless.  Natasha Culzac brings steely determination to Vera, and Finn Samuels is a talented multi-roler. Most of the cast have to play more than one part, which is sometimes momentarily confusing, and there are minor ensemble roles, all done quite neatly.

At 85 minutes without interval, this take on Vera; Or, the Nihilists is quite gripping theatre, not least because it’s such a novelty that few audience members know where it’s going, so there’s suspense. And it just about stops short of being too wordy. It gains little, however, from a voiceover to introduce scenes and certainly doesn’t need a mini lecture about Oscar Wilde at the end.

First published by The Reviews Hub https://www.thereviewshub.com/vera-or-the-nihilists-jack-studio-london/