Jakob and Esther Rubenstein became the cause celebre of liberal America in the fifties when they were sentenced to death, found guilty of passing atomic secrets to the Soviets.
James Phillips, here directing the first play he has written, is unapologetic in his assertion that they were guilty. Betrayal and deceit at the heart of this beautifully written piece - alongside loyalty to a cause and to principles - as, 25 years after the Rubensteins’ deaths, two twentysomethings begin to reopen the case for their defence.
It is a wonderfully constructed play, the fully-formed characters weave between one another not only in their own decades but also across the years, the final moving scene a tribute to how effectively this has been done.
Performances are faultless, although the American accents are not. Samantha Bond and Will Keen as Jakob and Esther are a couple as deeply in love with one another as they are committed to their cause. In Esther’s brother, David Girshfeld, Alan Cox conveys the pride of a working man following a cause because it feels the right thing to do but ultimately out of his depth with its more intellectual aspects. As his wife Rachel, Emily Bruni gives a measured performance that says most through the unsaid.
But it is the chemistry between seventies activists Matthew and Anna, played by Martin Hutson and Louisa Clein that really lifts this play, giving in an energy that glues together what could otherwise have been a difficult concept. Hampstead Theatre is back on track.
Production information can change over the run of the show.
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