Beneatha's Place London Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (7)
See it if you are interested in race relations and colonialism in the US and further afield. You enjoy intelligent, thought-provoking drama.
Don't see it if you prefer a more plot led play. The first half is full of plot but the second half is purely argument led. Read more
See it if ...you like "A Raisin in the Sun" and/or other pieces dealing with race in the U.S.
Don't see it if ...you're looking for a fully-engaging drama. Although the first act is often riveting, the second one peters out a bit. Read more
See it if You like discourse around race and great acting. Sharp screenplay too.
Don't see it if You don't like the play basically boiling down to a debate and arguments over white privileges vs black playing the victim card
See it if You're a fan of Clybourne Park/A Raisin in the Sun and want to complete the "Raisin" cycle. A clever show.
Don't see it if It's a very focused piece, don't go in expecting much to happen
See it if An important topic but given a rather cliches treatment in the second half.
Don't see it if A disappointing update from the US version.
See it if If you want a basic debate and want to explore contentious discussions about privilege
Don't see it if You appreciate a more nuanced exploration of the themes.
See it if you want to better understand the history of Nigeria and its impact on race relations today. It's a fascinating story.
Don't see it if It's a serious, important subject and there are some dark themes covered which may not suit everyone.
Critic Reviews (9)
“The script teems with knotty ideas about the erasure of black history by colonialists, the way white people moved through guilt to a perception of their own victimhood, and the notion that younger black people are exhausted by talk of race.”
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“The acrimony-flecked confab holds attention, and has a clear topicality...But with the characters little more than mouthpieces, the aura of orchestrated debate rather than organic drama is inescapable. A halfway house, then, between hit and miss.”
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"It’s all quite straightforward and never quite escapes the shadow of the two plays that have inspired it. But those ideas do grip, compelling attention."
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"I couldn’t help feeling late on as if the tail is wagging the dog here: events happen not because they would do so organically but because they have to happen in a certain way in order to prove a point."
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“Cherrelle Skeete is tremendous throughout as Beneatha, a compelling mix of the impassioned, the vulnerable and the resolute. It would be a stretch to say we really get to know her, though. So these conversation pieces divert and stimulate, but forever feel like a clutch of smart starting points for a story rather than the finished thing.”
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“Its resonance is substantially bolstered by its intertextuality and, without that context, its plotting is exposed as contrived. But its arguments, if sometimes baldly polemical, remain urgent and fecund, and Kwei-Armah’s own production is led by Cherrelle Skeete’s compelling and deeply felt performance as Beneatha.”
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“The play is a panoramic satire which engages thought-provokingly with Hansberry and Norris.”
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“Always engaging, the play never quite ignites. Kwei-Armah’s dialogue often lands squarely on the nose, and the fervid culture wars rhetoric remains thin. The playwright’s own production can feel staid, lining up academics across the stage.”
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