★★★★☆
The one-person play seems to be having a bit of a renaissance in the London theatre scene at the moment. Eddie Izzard is still lighting up the Garrick Theatre with her solo rendition of Dickens’ Great Expectations; last month, Ruth Wilson took to the Young Vic for a 24-hour endurance feat with The Second Woman, and last week Succession’s Sarah Snook was announced as the one and only cast member for the West End debut of Sydney Theatre Company’s The Picture of Dorian Gray.
Accidental Death of an Anarchist, Tom Basden’s adaptation of Dario Fo and Franca Rame’s 1970 Italian farce, might not be a one-man show by technicality. In practice, though, it really is Daniel Rigby’s show.
(photo: Helen Murray)
He plays the anonymous “Maniac,” a fourth wall-breaking, ludicrously energised actor set on causing as much mischief in the Met’s headquarters as possible. Combining a variety of voices and impressions with physical clowning and a bag full of props, Rigby gives a masterful comedic tour-de-force. Razor-sharp comic timing and frankly herculean levels of stamina ensure that when the focus is on the Maniac, there’s never a dull moment. Thankfully, the focus is almost always on the Maniac.
The rest of the cast (Tony Gardner, Tom Andrews, Mark Hadfield, Ro Kumar and Ruby Thomas) have a pretty daunting performance to live up to. Gardner holds his own well as the shout-y, pencil-pushing superintendent, but the rest at times feel unfairly placed opposite a comedian of this calibre. The few laugh-lines the script gives them, though delivered perfectly well, can’t help but fall a little flat as the audience waits for Rigby’s next punchline.
(photo: Helen Murray)
Still, it seems ridiculous to criticise a show because its lead is too good, and indeed that’s really the point of the play. Less a straightforward translation and more a top-to-bottom rewrite, Basden’s Anarchist takes the Milan-set investigation into a suspect’s “fall” from a police station window and shifts the action to the modern Met. Rigby’s Maniac, after a rambling conversation with an inspector, dresses up as a judge in order to uncover the truth behind a suspicious death in police custody.
It’s a weighty subject, and Accidental Death of an Anarchist treats the force with eviscerating contempt. The farcical but all-too-familiar story serves as a more effecting takedown of the Metropolitan police than any of a hundred investigations and inquiries ever could. Despite the near-constant heightened comedy of the show – there are almost no “let’s get serious for a second” moments here – the whole thing bristles with an anger that never quite subsides. As a demonstration of the satirical power comedy can have, it’s deeply impressive stuff.
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The modern-day references packed in throughout are generally excellent. Jettisoning all the nods to 1970s Italy in favour of digs at Routemasters and resignation honours lists arguably more accurately conveys the spirit of the original work far better than a rote-translation would have done. As is to be expected with the sheer volume of jokes, though, not everything lands – a couple of nods to the Marvel cinematic universe feel very forced, and Thomas’ millennial journalist has her tired woke stereotypes crippled by a vocal fry so severe there’s a genuine worry her pink hair will ignite.
But with a comic hit-rate this high, it’s easy to forgive a couple of missteps, and it’s never long before Rigby’s incredible performance hikes the action up another notch. At two hours including an interval, the relatively speedy runtime whizzes by. As the curtain closes, the breathless pace is more than a little exhausting, but righteous indignation it stirs up is as tireless as ever.
Accidental Death of an Anarchist is playing at the Theatre Royal Haymarket until 9 September.
