EDINBURGH 2025: Review: LOST LEAR, Traverse Theatre

Advertised as a 'moving and darkly comic remix' of Shakespeare's famous tragedy, Lost Lear retells the play through the eyes of Joy, an elderly dementia patient and former actress trapped in a continuous memory of rehearsing King Lear for the stage. Medical staff play along in her imagined world, supplying sound effects and taking on roles to maintain her charade. But when her son Connor arrives seeking reconciliation, his presence unsettles the fragile theatre of make-believe she has so carefully constructed.

Venetia Bowe steals the show as Joy. She is consistently engaging from start to finish and fully convincing in such a demanding, difficult role. Dan Colley’s writing and direction are simulteanously intelligent and heart-rending. The effortless intertwinement of Shakespeare’s tragedy with this modern narrative is genius, drawing parallels between Connor and Joy’s relationship and that of Lear and Cordelia, as well as the shared themes of madness and illusion. 

The production also uses puppetry beautifully, with doctors and nurses manipulating a puppet of Joy - a potent symbol of her dependence on their care, and of how her sense of autonomy has slipped into the hands of others. There’s even a subtle nod to Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire - a character who, like Joy, clings to illusion and fragility - through the line ‘I’ve always depended on the kindness of strangers.’ The world of Lear and reality repeatedly combine, leaving us wondering: what is actually real here?

My only small criticism is that once the twist of Joy’s dementia is revealed, the play stagnates slightly. The emotional stakes remain, but the narrative drive doesn’t progress much further. However, I'd still recommend it as a clever, touching piece of theatre.

Lost Lear is at the Traverse Theatre until 24 August

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