National Theatre, London
With its heavy mood and gnomic song lyrics, this updated reimaging of Our Mutual Friend is like a 19th-century noir
Period drama is given some sharp edges in this adaptation of Charles Dickens’ last completed novel, Our Mutual Friend, set to a plangent soundtrack by PJ Harvey. The result is a dose of Dickens, and Harvey, as never seen or heard before.
There might be some dissonance in their unlikely meeting but there are sparks of brilliance, too. Directed by Ian Rickson, this story of poverty and class mobility is light on the satire and heavy on mood, strikingly staged as a kind of 19th-century noir in an impressively pared-down adaptation by Ben Power.
