The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Mark Haddon's innovative 2003 novel was written in the first person from the perspective of 15 year old Christopher (Scott Reid).  Although his medical diagnosis is never stated, he describes himself as  "a mathematician with some behavioural difficulties" and shows signs of high functioning autism.  The success of the book is down to the way the author takes us inside the head of it's hero, something very difficult to replicate on stage.  So, although this production is faithful to the original in much of the story line, it's best to forget about the book and view this production with fresh eyes.

With a set that looks more Star Trek than Swindon, and one that delivers as much to the performance as the actors, it's clear this is going to go well beyond conventional storytelling.   It opens with Christopher discovering the body of a neighbour's dog, killed by a pitch fork.  We quickly learn that he is very precise, takes everything literally, and definitely doesn't like being touched (when he lashes out at a policemen who does).  He has an uneasy relationship with the world, and with his father, his mother having died two years before.

Christopher sets off to investigate the death of the dog and in doing so sets off a chain of events that leads to him finding out more than he bargained for, and running away from home.  He writes down his findings in a book and Siobhan, his life tutor at school, encourages him to write it in the form of a story.  And the drama becomes his book being acted out, partly through narration from Siobhan and from Christopher himself, partly through scenes being played out on stage.  Even though, as our hero tells us, acting is a form of lying, something he himself is incapable of.

The first half is fast paced, makes effective use of  technology and a constantly shifting cast to portray the workings of Christopher's mind, his fears and the challenges he faces in undertaking tasks most of us wouldn't have to think about.  After the interval the confusion of his unaccompanied journey is impressively choreographed and requires and athletic an trusting performance from Reid. It's a brave effort to portray the terrors the journey holds for him, but there was a sense of the staging taking over from the storytelling and a reminder of why"seen through the medium of interpretative dance" has become such a comedy trope.  Later there's a gushingly sentimental moment that jars with the overall tone of the piece.  So the second half feels like a disappointment after the rapid fire first, but still manages a satisfactory conclusion.

There's a strong ensemble cast, tight choreography and strong use of lighting and effects.  It's just a shame that it loses it's way at times, but this is a difficult subject to bring to the stage.  I left having enjoyed the experience, but couldn't help thinking that this is a story crying our for a proper cinematic treatment - there's a great film in there somewhere.