Invasive Species is a dark comedy and true story about Maia, an immigrant actor who will stop at nothing to achieve her dream of being in the American movies, even if that means having to act her way out of a youth psychiatric ward.
After being named one of the best cultural works of the year by The Hollywood Reporter and racking up more than 17 million views on TikTok, the New York cult hit invades London this autumn for a strictly limited 5-week run.
A show like nothing I have seen before, I left Invasive Species not quite certain how much I actually liked it, and kept pondering that on the journey home. I came to the conclusion that impactful theatre should stay with you throughout that journey home, and not pop out of your memory the instant you see something else on the underground. To that end, I could only conclude that Invasive Species deserved its flowers. Bold, brave, and certainly unconventional, its erratic nature may not be to everyone’s tastes, but if you are looking for something different to watch, you could do much worse than this new species of a show.
There’s no denying, of course, that Novi’s acting career being curtailed by an unintentional stay in a youth psychiatric hospital is a unique and unusual premise – even more so when it’s a true story – but when the comedy is tailored to a very specific and knowledgeable audience, and what remains after that is a jumbled narrative and message, then this play sadly fails to generate much of a buzz.
| 2025 | West End |
West End |
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