The Oyster Problem London Reviews and Tickets

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About the Show

Historian Orlando Figes' debut play, inspired by his best-selling book 'The Europeans'.

Madame Bovary made Gustave Flaubert the most famous writer in Paris, but thanks to a bad publishing deal, he’s earned barely any money. In fact, he is totally broke. His friends Zola and Turgenev beg him to dumb down his work for the masses, but Gustave isn’t compromising. As such, Flaubert must find a job ...

Philip Wilson directs this comedy of literary fiascos.

Critic Reviews (4)

“Two gruelling hours and 20 minutes are way too long for such a stagnant plot. Wilson's direction doesn't help with the issue, adding very little appeal.”
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“The play’s tendency to be a grab bag of biographical details is indulgent as much as it is diligent, but if gobbets such as Zola’s entice you, Figes’s first play proves worth sitting through.”
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“The play (and score) wants you to feel a sense of tragedy that it hasn’t really earned along the laborious route it’s taken to get there.”
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“Figes is known for the depth and vibrancy of his research, and those trademark strengths shine through in Philip Wilson’s measured production.”
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Trailer

Creative team

Jermyn Street Theatre