This extraordinary play created by Robert Icke challenges on so many levels.
Juliet Stevenson as Professor Ruth Wolff in The Doctor | Photo © Manuel Harlan
It is a tour de force from a performance and writing perspective which will leave you questioning your personal thoughts and feelings of medical ethics and the philosophy of death.
This adaptation of Arthur Schnitzler’s Professor Bernhardi focuses on how eminent medic Ruth prevents a priest seeing a 14-year-old girl dying from a self-administered abortion, unsurprisingly social media trolls create a toxic world of petitions and jeopardises everything.
Juliet Stevenson commands the show as The Doctor, Ruth Wolff. This could no doubt become an award-winning play on its transfer to London but here we are gifted an astonishing portrayal.
Barely leaving the stage and mesmerising in its detail and breadth of presentation, the live feed in Act 2 reveals microscopic nuance in the performance and cements her place as one of the finest actors working today.
The surrounding cast are equally excellent. The play with gender and race is brilliantly handled forcing the audience to question their own preconceived perceptions and inherent views we carry.
The focus on rethinking identity and belonging is an integral part of the script which is handled with utter respect through Icke’s Direction.
The crux of the piece, without spoilers, is given further depth by Wolff’s personal circumstances which she keeps from her colleagues. Designer Hildegard Bechtler creates a clinical, empowering vision which allows the drama to move with ease.
Thought-provoking and difficult on many levels but an absolute must-see production, it will leave you moved and questioning your very own responses to the situation. And how the world of social media can crucify individuals with texts and opinions without supporting knowledge. Just Go!
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Reviewer: Petra Schofield
