Review: THE GUILTY, Starring Russell Tovey, Donmar Warehouse

If you suffer from any kind of anxiety or nervousness, I would advise caution when booking the latest show at The Donmar Warehouse. Chloë Moss's new play, The Guilty, is 60 minutes of pure claustrophobic tension. In the heat of the summer outside, it feels like watching water gradually reaching boiling point.

As Massive Attack's "Angel" pulses its introduction, a spotlight gradually fades up on a lone figure. Joe is a police officer temporarily assigned to emergency call duty. It is clear he is not relishing his role, approaching incoming calls with emotions ranging from distain, to frustration, to pure boredom. Then a call comes in that quickly changes his attitude; Emily is a victim of an apparent abduction, speaking to Joe from the back of a vehicle in a terrified whisper. As he scrambles to help her, the production escalates into a darkly compelling and propulsive thriller, complete with shocking climax.

Adapted from two films (the original Danish, and an American remake starring Jake Gyllenhaal), Moss creates a multi-layered and nuanced character in Joe. It would have been easy to make him a straightforward hero, but he is troubled man struggling with his own personal and professional demons. Moss also manages to avoid the cliché of tormented cop who gets things done by unconventional methods through the sheer pace and mounting pressure of the story. 

Russell Tovey is utterly compelling as Joe: quick to anger with a caller ringing about a neighbour's loud party, tender with his own daughter and increasingly frantic as he tries everything within his restricted power to help Emily. Tovey carries conviction into every action, from the mundane dropping of an antacid into a glass of water to his panicky pacing liked a caged animal.

There's no doubt where much of the unnerving immersiveness of the production comes from. Punchdrunk is the OG of immersive theatre and The Guilty marks Punchdrunk founder Felix Barrett's continuation of more traditional theatre direction, after the unnerving Paranormal Activity. Punchdrunk's work often focuses on manipulating the audience's senses; here it is all about the audible elements-what we think we can hear and what the reality is. Barrett's direction is slickly efficient and no action or word is wasted. It takes real skill to raise the tension in a theatre so quickly and effectively that you don't realise that your nails are digging sharply into your hands by the end.

The creative team combine efforts to completely submerge the audience in the apprehension and rapidly increasing anxiety rippling from the stage. Alex Eales's set is depressingly functional; a desk sits under flickering strip lighting, two other desks at the back are shrouded in plastic dust sheets, a watercooler is in the corner and a bin is surrounded by screwed up pieces of paper that Joe has thrown in moments of deep boredom. A dancing plastic Hawaiian figure on the desk is also a nice touch of frivolity to contrast with the developing danger.

Gareth Fry's sound design is simply exceptional, creating stark clarity between the multiple callers and Joe's own voice. As a clock ticks ominously in the windowless space, down the various lines, sirens blare out, rain steadily falls and muffled background sounds all create a highly realistic reflection of the world outside. This is all aided beautifully by lighting designer Anna Watson who creates a flat and airless space which occasionally shifts into something completely different.

There are suggestions that Joe's world might not all be a reality. It's unlikely a 999 operator for the Met Police would ever be working alone, have pauses in incoming calls, or be surrounded by vital computer equipment that is switched off and covered by dust sheets. What is reality and what may be inside Joe's head? It's a thought-provoking question.

It all comes together in a dramatic climax that teeters a little towards melodrama (no spoilers here), but is saved by an exceptional performance from Tovey and a truely theatrical production. Just make sure you take some deep breathes before it starts.

The Guilty is at The Donmar Warehouse until 15 August

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