Written by Siobhan for Theatre & Tonic

Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review

Dean Street’s Soho Theatre welcomes the premiere of Jurassic - a satire play by the Bruntwood Prize winner Tim Foley about dinosaurs, and misinformation.

A two-hander works perfectly for telling the story of two clashes of opinion. We meet Jay, a palaeontology lecturer who is one of many staff members to be fired by boss Dean. A new manager taking over a company and ‘getting rid’ of existing staff is a story as old as time, but in this new spin - the firing has been motivated by Dean’s rewatching of Jurassic Park… which he has mistaken as a documentary.

Dinosaur lovers may already be sold on coming and watching Foley’s new work just by the title, but this is a play that goes far beyond appealing to only one type of audience member. As chaos falls upon our two characters, we experience a build of dramatic tension and engaging atmosphere. It becomes clear that what Jay and Dean are battling to win isn't just academic integrity or to re-educate the other, but to allow the watcher to deep dive into social politics and power that are especially frequent in a workplace environment.

The beauty of this 60 minute play is in the witty language and plot, a plot that you may not predict - unless a countdown skit going into an exploration of murder is something you expect, which I doubt. It's this fast pace and ‘silliness’ of the piece that is vital in spurring the audience into reflection after the show. It gives you no time to sit with the characters points, and work out your own in the moment - and that's why it's genius. Because theatre is meant to keep you thinking and analysing, even hours after the curtain call.

With powerful and fully energised performances from the cast, Matt Holt (Dean) creates a villain who is oddly likeable and addictive to watch, which perfectly contrasts Alastair Michael’s (Jay) hero, a hero the audience supports from start to finish.

You don’t have to be a lover of Dinosaurs to enjoy this play, but a lover of story.

Jurassic plays at Soho Theatre until November 29th.

★ ★ ★ ★

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