“With a translation by Conor McPherson, the Almeida's stage premiere of Paweł Pawlikowski’s bleak 2018 film ‘Cold War’ is a triumph”
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“For all its moments of stark loveliness, dramatically the play doesn’t satisfy. But it’s like an emotional bruise, tenderly and insistently inflicted.”
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“To call ‘Cold War’ enjoyable feels like a contradiction, given the dark sombre nature of the story and the inevitable doom that awaits it. It manages to convey these difficult themes very well, though the tone of the show did get lost along the way at times and led to a slight pacing problem. Still a beautiful albeit harrowing story in its own right, ‘Cold War’ is bolstered by phenomenal performances, impressive writing and stunning direction.”
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“This is definitely not an uplifting show but it will certainly make you feel something. ‘Cold War’ embraces the trials and hardships of Soviet life in particular, and there is no happy ending but there are moments of laughter and light.”
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”... it really is a lovely show, and appreciably different to the film: the plot is identical, but McPherson’s dialogue is funnier, and it runs around an hour longer, with a gorgeously weary nocturnal quality replacing the crisp black and white cinematography.”
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“...this country’s enormous Polish population has little visibility in popular culture, and I feel there was an opportunity missed to do more here. With that said, I’m going to declare glasnost, because frankly ‘Cold War’ is beautiful.”
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“It’s an unusual and original show, one that haunts you long after you leave the theatre, its essential sadness sweetened by tinges of hope and a deep humanity.”
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“Goold’s production is vividly designed, embracing bright peasant garb and left-bank boho chic, Iron Curtain apparatchik offices and smoky, spotlit clubs...I didn’t have any of this on my dance card for theatre in December, but ‘Cold War’ is a brilliantly bitter antidote to standard Christmas fare.”
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