Light Shining in Buckinghamshire, National Theatre **

After productions such as 'Who Cares' and 'The Vote', the National's contribution to the debate in the wake of the election is pretty middle of the road. True, Devlins set is, as always, impressive and imposing. The acting too is decent, although no one stands out. The play itself is the problem. Churchill's play is dry and stodgy with little to connect with. I think it is intended for us to identify human endeavour throughout the ages against the ruling classes to strike a chord in the modern day. Yet, all that is portrayed by Lyndsey Turner's direction keeps it to just a retelling of history despite Soutra Gilmour attempting to blur the lines at the end with her costume designs. This production needs to look to Dara to see how historical stories can be told in a way that connects emotionally with the audience. The Putney Debate scene should have been an exciting climax to the half but in fact was dreary and dull. It should be a play about revolution but instead is about people talking about revolution. Even actors that I love like Joshua James, Ashley McGuire and Steffan Rhodri can't salvage a play that ultimately fails in providing decent theatre. I love the National, but this is a serious misstep which won't help Rufus Norris in his first season.