Tessa is a thoroughbred. A young, brilliant barrister who loves to win. She has worked her way up from working-class origins to be at the top of her game; defending; cross-examining and lighting up the shadows of doubt in any case. An unexpected event forces her to confront the lines where the patriarchal power of the law, burden of proof and morals diverge. Suzie Miller’s award-winning Prima Facie takes us to the heart of where emotion and experience collide with the rules of the game. Justin Martin directs this solo actor tour de force from Jodie Comer.
I leave it to the jury of theatergoers to determine whether the larger legal argument that Miller makes in Prima Facie follows necessarily from Tessa’s specific experience. But about Comer’s performance there can be no doubt: This is a powerful and moving star turn. It has a very different energy from the Broadway season’s other great dramatic performance by a woman. Whereas Jessica Chastain spends A Doll’s House nearly immobile, Comer is a whirlwind: moving furniture, changing costumes, standing on tables, switching into the voices and accents of more than a dozen minor characters as Tessa narrates her story. Her virtuosity is not just a game—it’s emotional. Miller builds a respectable case, but Comer argues it brilliantly.
In a bravura stage debut (!), Comer plays Tessa, an intelligent young criminal defense barrister in London whose workload has somehow come to focus on sexual assault cases. She looks forward to cross-examination, if not so much returning home to her somewhat distant mother. Tessa is not a shark, but her mentality is sharp as one’s teeth. “There is no real truth, only legal truth,” she says, explaining the rational logistics of her work. The brilliance of Miller’s creation, brought exquisitely to life by Comer, is that Tessa does not seek to justify her career. She’s not bending over backwards to absolve herself, and her trust in the legal system is soberly convincing. And she is also the kind of woman we’d all like to befriend: successful, fun, level-headed, understanding.
Digital Lottery:
Price: $10
Where: primafacieplay.com/ticket-lottery
When: Beginning April 5, 2023, tickets priced at $10 for the following week's performances will be released every Wednesday.
Limit: Two per customer
Information: Tickets are subject to availability.
Videos