Kevin Spacey’s artistic direction of the Old Vic might well keep him busy, but thankfully it doesn’t preclude him from taking to the stage himself on a regular basis, most notably hitherto in Eugene O’Neill’s A Moon For The Misbegotten and Shakespeare’s Richard II. He now reunites with that production’s director, Trevor Nunn, for a rare British revival of Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee’s play, based on the legendary lawyer Clarence Darrow’s defence of a young man who attempted to teach Darwinism in a Tennessee high school. The play might have seemed more relevant in America, given the ever-present tension between creationism and religion there, but there’s no denying the quality of this production, helped by Nunn’s confident direction. Spacey is, of course, superb – complete with white hair, bulk and a lolloping gait – and he’s matched by David Troughton as Matthew Harrison Brady, a thrice-defeated Presidential candidate trying desperately to combine his deep religious beliefs with a final attempt at rescuing his reputation. A superb evening.
Until 20 Dec. Old Vic, The Cut, SE1. www.oldvictheatre.com.
