David Auburn’s play focuses on Catherine (Rebecca James), who may have inherited mathematical genius and mental instability from her father (Peter Trott), and explores myriad themes including gender politics, family relationships, the difficulties of intellectual endeavour and of establishing “proof” of anything.
It’s a nice meaty mixture but this production does seem a little lacking in sparkle, despite James’s excellent performance and flashes of wit. The tone is pretty quiet throughout, and too little tension is extracted from the possibility that the heroine may be deranged or dishonest, so the tidy ending leaves no sense of relief or enduring mystery. .
Still, this is an interesting “drama of ideas” and James is well matched by Kyle Fraser as a post-graduate student caught between personal ambition, admiration for the father and growing attraction to Catherine. They produce some sparks, and skilfully “age down” in the flashback scenes. Ham Quentin
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