MARIA DUARTE is swept along by the cocky self-belief of a ping-pong hustler in a surprisingly violent drama
Latest editorial
The Rubenstein Kiss, Southwark Playhouse, London
Thought-provoking drama on the Rosenbergs, executed in 1953 as ‘Soviet spies’ in the US
Fatal Attraction: Ruby Bentall (Esther Rubenstein) and Henry Proffit (Jakob Rubenstein)
[Scott Rylander]
STEVE ANDREW recommends a lively and often moving guide to once vibrant spaces that have been abandoned or swept away
GEOFF BOTTOMS appreciates the local touch brought to a production of Dickens’s perennial classic
MARY CONWAY is disappointed by a production whose design and cartoonish acting overwhelms the close scrutiny of characters
SUSAN DARLINGTON enjoys the raucous familiarity of a traditional topsy-turvy pantomime
RON JACOBS introduces the latest novel by the best writer of US working-class fiction writing today
JAMES PHILLIPS’S play is the story of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg, who perished on the electric chair for allegedly passing atomic warfare secrets to the Soviet Union.
While the names have been changed and there is some dramatic licence, essentially it’s the authentic history.
The central focus is the American-Jewish couple Esther and Jakob Rubenstein, devoted soulmates with a passion for communism, while Esther’s brother David and his soon-to-be-wife Rachel also shape the drama.
Similar stories
MARY CONWAY applauds the success of Beth Steel’s bitter-sweet state-of-the-nation play
MARY CONWAY is blown away by a flawless production of Lynn Nottage’s exquisite tragedy
MAYER WAKEFIELD laments the lack of audience interaction and social diversity in a musical drama set on London’s Underground
ANDY HEDGECOCK welcomes an explanation of genocide by the persecuted author that is both uplifting and important