"The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time"

Nottingham Theatre Royal.

The play tells the story of Christopher John Francis Boone, who is fifteen years old. He stands besides Mrs Shears’ dead dog, which has been speared with a garden fork, it is seven minutes after midnight and Christopher is under suspicion. He records each fact in a book he is writing to solve the mystery of who killed Wellington. He has an extraordinary brain and is exceptional at maths, while everyday life presents some barriers. He has never ventured alone beyond the end of his road, he detests being touched and distrusts strangers. But his detective work, forbidden by his father, takes him on a frightening journey that upturns his world.

To anyone on the outside world of autism, what Chris has to cope with, and let's face it, this is everyday life to an autistic person, takes up a lot of energy. From not wanting to be touched by anyone, not even his parents, to having to carefully work everything out by way of a pre worked out design for living, as shown when in London and making his way to the railway station, or even just boarding a tube. You can see and feel the utter frustration held by Chris when in these situations.

These things aside the play also shows how highly intelligent this young man is. He takes maths exams a year before others in his age group, and passes with an A Star grading.

Apart from this massive achievement, the play also highlights the importance of family in Chris' life, and the difficulties that both his mother and father have learning about their son's differences, so it's good to see both sides of the coin as an offshoot theme.

This touring production marks a decade of the play which originated at the National Theatre. I've seen the show several times and is just one of those shows that you have to go back and watch again as there is so much to take in, and I find myself spotting bits that I may have missed in previous productions, not only that but it is a wonderfully entertaining piece of theatre.

This production also seemed to hold a more comical feel, and seemed to go at a faster pace to the previous productions that I remember seeing. This also has the advantage of drawing you into the frantic pace of life that Christopher appears to live at. Throughout the play it does seem to leave you breathless at times.

David Breed and Connor Curren both play Christopher in separate performances, but the presentation on opening night starred Connor Curren, who himself is autistic. This role is an extremely physical role for any actor, but carried out with supreme ease throughout. You can only think that with the energy and passion that comes from Christopher, that any actor who plays the character, must surely end each show just a bit drained. The script is lengthy and Christopher has some long and difficult pieces to relay.

Rebecca Root plays Siobhan, Chris's teacher who also narrates the story, which is the story that Chris has written, therefore creating a "play within a play" situation. Like all the characters in this play, they appear and disappear from all sides of the stage and also pop up in the theatre boxes and the balcony, making full use of the whole theatre.

The supporting cast, who also appear in several roles throughout compliment the pacy Christopher performance through every step, whether that be on stage or in the aerial walks up and down the set walls.

The amazing set, by Bunny Christie, has also advanced from the last time that I saw the play, and every time that I see this play it just grows and grows, getting better and better. the set design which is the epitome of futuristic, even by today's standards. Christopher spends quite a bit of time building up a model railway set up and village, which at the end of Act One springs into life, seemingly of it's own accord.

The incredible video design by Finn Ross creates an urgency, especially when Chris travels to London from Swindon by train. The confusion of being in a new city is plainly brought to life by the design and leaves your head spinning and quite disorientates you.

This is one piece of theatre where movement is a key part of the play, and anyone who has seen this play will know exactly what I mean. The image of weightlessness and floating in space with Chris is created brilliantly and if you squint, you can just see Chris floating in space in slow motion, and not the other actors supporting him. I've not really seen too many pieces of theatre that use movement in the same way and therefore a mention to the movement directors, Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett for Frantic Assembly, really is a necessity here.

Also creating the magic of this piece is the lighting and sound design by Paule Constable and Ian Dickinson (Autograph) respectively. Both creating an audio and visual playground for the audience.

I imagine that directing this play is completely different to directing any other piece of theatre and how Marianne Elliott would start is a complete enigma to someone like myself. Maybe it is best to not even start to contemplate this but to enjoy the magic.

If you do plan to come and see this wonderfully heart-warming play though, hang back after the bows as Christopher returns to the stage to explain Pythagoras Theorem, which was part of the exam that Chris had to take as a fifteen-year-old. It is worth it, even though I still have no idea what it all means after seeing this play at least three times, but the explanation is impressive.

After seeing the play for the first time some years ago, I bought the book by Mark Haddon, I loved the play that much. The play remains faithful to the book while also moving, technology wise with the latest in theatrical screen design.

"The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night Time" is at the Nottingham Theatre Royal until Saturday 12 February.