The Clinic (London) London Reviews and Tickets
Critic Reviews (10)
"Baruwa-Etti has had four plays staged in the last two years and the three seen in London have been crunchy, uneven and intriguing. This play, though a significant addition to his oeuvre, could definitely have benefited from a little more time and finessing."
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"Although Touko’s production seems to end in a living evocation of the ‘this is fine’ meme ...the play comes across as more blandly nihilistic than powerfully satirical. I guess this is in fact fine – as in, it’s basically pretty entertaining – but a couple of rewrites and a round or two with a dramaturg and it could have been so much more."
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"Its ominous signs lead nowhere, turning back into political argument as the plot yields one odd turn after another without delivering in its climax. Yet, incredibly, this drama never stops being absorbing, partly because of the calibre of performances; Obianyo and Berlin are particularly strong."
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"There’s so much potential here, but Baruwa-Etti is content to skim the surface, while Monique Touko’s production struggles to find a consistent tone, some of the more incendiary lines landing like outtakes from a sitcom."
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"Some of the plot twists seem overly conventional, while others feel underwritten and underdeveloped. 'The Clinic' is an ambitious undertaking, that never loses the attention, but it doesn't make the impact Baruwa-Etti's talent deserves. It's big, bold and unruly, but not quite as focussed as it needs to be."
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"'The Clinic' may not be the tidiest play you’ve ever seen but, among the current spate of early-autumn openings, it is easily the most entertaining."
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"The play is highly-charged: there are complex ideas here about class, compromise and responsibility; about the cost of success for Black people, and its fragility even after it has been hard-won. At times, it’s more dazzle than clarity. Fierce, funny and fascinating."
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"The wit and energy of the writing can’t quite conceal its many flaws... I’m not sure in the end what the play is really saying, but I’m very glad I saw it. An interesting mess."
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