Michael Cox reviews a production that’s ‘a fun (and surprisingly short) night out’ that ‘doesn’t quite live up to its promise.
Mysteries are a fun game. That’s the point. They are there to thrill and challenge—and the best can also sneak in undercurrents of social commentary, while the worst can make you feel like you were played without any satisfaction or resolution.
Rebus: A Game Called Malice falls in the middle. It does have some good plot turns and character beats that surprise, but it’s not as clever or as fulfilling of an experience as it appears to think it is.
Such a title promises audiences two specific things, and to look at how the production works, we need to look at both.
Writers Ian Rankin and Simon Reade have put Inspector Rebus front and centre, and here is where the play is successful. Gray O’Brien’s depiction of Rebus is in many ways perfect—plausible in the role for those who know the character (be it from the books or various adaptations) yet interesting enough for those with no prior knowledge. The play also gives enough reason for it to actually be Rebus and not just any investigator who happens to be in the room—prior knowledge of the character’s world and background is unnecessary but does deliver nice easter eggs.
It is, however, the ‘game called malice’ where this production faulters. It would be unfair to speak about what the crime is and how it unfolds—the pleasure in these things come from having little to no knowledge of the plot devices used. All I am willing to reveal is that, by the end, the game plays out—and it does ‘play’ fair by having a solution that indeed works in the dramatic world created. But it feels too distant and too neat to fully satisfy.
And while the characters in such plays don’t have to be likable or sympathetic, none of the characters outside of Rebus are overtly interesting here. We have people who may or may not be up to no good, and we have yet another social media influencer clearly created by and for those well above ‘a certain age’ (and who lacks any substance or credibility). Unfortunately, none of these characters—nor their predicaments—compel.
Added together, and the result is a modest success. It is a fun (and surprisingly short) night out, but it doesn’t quite live up to its promise.
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Rebus: A Game Called Malice performs at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre until September 14, 2024 before continuing to Aberdeen (September 16-21) and Glasgow (September 23-27). It then continues touring the UK until November 30, 2024.
Photo by Nobby Clark.
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