A Very Expensive Poison at The Old Vic

There’s no doubting Lucy Prebble’s capacity for weaving something very different out of a story.  She did it with Enron and has now brought her interpretation of the poisoning of Russian émigré Alexander Litvinenko to The Old Vic stage.  Not for her a straight forward narrative, instead A Very Expensive Poison (also the title of Luke Harding’s book on which the play is based) has more than its fair share of black humour, singing, dancing ….. and puppetry!  Bearing in mind the terrible consequences of dying from a dose of polonium 210 planted in a cup of tea, it’s no bad thing that she’s highlighted the bungling nature of those responsible and has Vladimir Putin (or as he's billed in the programme President and played by the excellent Reece Shearsmith) as the unreliable narrator in the second half.  Without this, the story would be very depressing indeed.  And the different tones she uses to explain what happened enhances rather than diminishes Britain’s shoddy political stance.  Keen not to upset the apple cart with regard to our Russian ties, it took more than eight years for the story to come to light and a public enquiry to be conducted.

The first half is mostly seen through the eyes of Marina Litvinenko, Alexander’s wife, and brings us up to speed on the background of how her husband, a former detective with Russia’s FSB, died in a London hospital in 2006.  The pair of them had fled to Britain following Alexander’s expose of the links between organised crime and the Russian government, but, as we all know, that particular country eventually catches up with those who dare to criticise.  The play highlights the love the couple had for one another and Marina’s tireless determination to make the truth known about his untimely death.

The entire cast are excellent.  None more so than MyAnna Buring as Marina and Tom Brooke as Alexander.  Their touching relationship contrasts sharply with the disingenuous Russian leader who demands revenge at all costs, his incompetent assassins and the attempt at a cover-up by the British.  Whilst the play, because of all the various techniques used, is rather lacking in dramatic force, there are some sit up and take notice moments, not least when we’re played a recording of Theresa May, our then Home Secretary.  She couldn’t have been more evasive if she tried.  Most of the Russian characters are brash, none more so than Peter Polycarpou’s Boris Berezovsky.  He makes Boris Johnson look shy and retiring.  Always the swaggerer, the oligarch even breaks into song in a swanky Mayfair restaurant and struts his stuff on the dance floor.

Prebble’s genre busting play is brilliantly brought to life by the skill and imagination of Designer Tom Scutt.  His complex set smoothly transforms from hospital room to the Litvinenko’s Russian apartment, airport check in to laboratory.  Meanwhile Director John Crowley manages to turn the multiple locations and characters into a cohesive whole.  At 2hrs 40 min, the play is a little lengthy and didn’t always hold my attention, but I applaud the young playwright’s ingenuity.