Theatre Review: ‘Twelve Angry Men’ (Tour)

Following a West End triumph, Reginald Rose‘s timeless chamber piece takes to the road for a glittering UK tour. As fresh today as it was as a teleplay and then an Oscar-nominated motion picture in 1957, the ensemble legal drama absorbs packed theatre auditoriums entrancing old and new audiences up and down the country with its gripping mastery. Our full Twelve Angry Men theatre review continues below.

It takes quite a piece of writing to entice audiences back to the theatre time and time again. Twelve Angry Men is just one of a bunch of productions sweeping through the British Isles this year that enjoys and stands up re-viewings, joining the likes of The Mousetrap which was first staged in 1952, and the slightly later The Woman In Black (1987).

“A life in the balance. Twelve men. One verdict.”

Set in one room, a twelve-man jury presides over a case that has just been adjourned so they consider their verdicts. It seems like it is an open-and-shut case, the defendant a sixteen-year-old boy accused of murdering his father. The evidence is stacked against him with multiple witnesses putting him at the scene with the murder weapon, a switchblade knife individual in design. Asked for an initial vote, all of the members of the all-male jury decide that he is guilty, except for one; Juror No. 8 who has reasonable doubt that he might not be guilty at all. What follows is nearly two hours of intense debate as the other jurors pull apart every piece of evidence presented by the defendant’s lawyers and the opposition prosecutors in a twisty, intensely gripping piece of classic storytelling that packs as much of a punch today as Sidney Lumet’s Henry Fonda-led production did nearly seven decades ago.

Jason Merrells, Gray O’Brien, Tristan Gemmill, Michael Greco, Ben Nealon and Gary Webster lead the main cast of this revival, directed by Christopher Haydon. Seasoned actors who have appeared in the likes of British shows like Eastenders, Minder, Coronation Street and Casualty, to name but a few, play a bunch of New Yorkers from different walks of life, complete with perfect accents; convincing portrayals in a period piece (it is still set in the heat of the 1950s Big Apple), all of them on stage for the play’s hefty duration. Bar the off-stage toilet cubicle, every part of the set is visible, the actors asked to be busy in the room constantly, a thirteenth cast member, a security guard, also visible stage right from beginning to end.

Related: Dr. Strangelove stage work coming: Steve Coogan stars, while Armando Iannucci co-writes

The stage design is simple, though effective. One room with a twelve-seater table in the centre which slowly revolves as the narrative progresses. It does a full 180 during the first half, the table literally turning as the story unfolds and the plot slowly thickens. This continues in the second, equally gripping second half, the long, hot day turning to dusk, rain falling on the windows ahead, lightning striking the city overhead. Very simple but totally effective, so much so that in such a way that my wife didn’t even notice the table moving until it was pointed out in the interval.

Quite simply one of the greatest stories ever told and this new rendition does nothing but execute it perfectly.

And that’s a credit to the writing, brilliant acting and direction. This is a story and play that pulls the viewer in from the off and won’t let go until its stunning conclusion. Whether you know the story or not, it’s one of those that will continue to generate intrigue and recommendations following every performance. Quite simply one of the greatest stories ever told and this new rendition does nothing but execute it perfectly. If it travels even remotely close to you, make sure you’re one of the lucky ones to bag a ticket.

Twelve Angry Men was reviewed at Lighthouse Poole. It has remaining dates in Derby, London Richmond, Milton Keynes, Aberdeen, Salford, Malvern, Guildford, Windsor, Lichfield, Dublin, Blackpool, and Wolverhampton.