Review: AN INSPECTOR CALLS, King's Theatre

JB Priestly's classic thriller An Inspector Calls returns to Glasgow, directed by Stephen Daldry. 

The Birling family are having a celebratory dinner to celebrate Sheila (Leona Allen) and Gerald (Tom Chapman)'s engagement. Sheila's father Arthur Billing (Jeffrey Harmer) is a wealthy factory owner full of his own self-importance. When a police inspector arrives at his home, Arthur is quick to let him know how well-connected he is to the rest of the police force.

Inspector Goole (Tim Treldar) is unimpressed by his connections. He has come to the Birling family with news of a young woman who has taken her own life. Twenty-four-year-old Eva Smith died in the infirmary after drinking disinfectant. As the evening unfolds and he questions the members of the household, it would seem that every one of them has a connection to this woman and could have contributed to her demise.

The staging for An Inspector Calls is truly impressive. The Birling house is propped up like a doll's house that opens and closes. The lavish interiors are a stark contrast to the grimy city streets and smoke and rain make this a wonderfully atmospheric play. 

The performances are fantastic as we watch this upper middle-class family start to unravel under the questioning of the unflappable Inspector Goole. 

First performed in 1945, the themes of class and gender are still depressingly relevant today. This National Theatre production first toured the UK in 2011 but it feels fresh, gritty and thrilling.

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