Four fabulous fibbing performers
Apollo Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue
Florian Zeller’s comedy about adultery, deceit and the dangers of truth features twist after twist. Comedy is so often a matter of taste, so it was either ‘seat-shakingly funny’ (Guardian 5⭑) or ‘ponderous’ (Stage 2⭑).Most of the critics praised the cast of Stephen Mangan (‘fantastically enjoyable’ Time Out), Ardal O’Hanlan, Sarah Hadland and Janie Dee.
[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]
5 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑
Mark Lawson for The Guardian defined it as ‘a modern French farce that adds to the form’s physical comedy a metaphysical dimension about whether accuracy and veracity are possible or even sensible. Across seven scenes, each featuring two characters, alibis overlap and contradict. Lies may be a tactic to expose truth and vice versa until the plot twists into a double helix of deceit.’ The play, he said, ‘is made seat-shakingly funny by four fabulously fibbing performers.’
4 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑
The Telegraph’s Dominic Cavendish called it ‘a spiralling comedy of infidelity and duplicity.’ He thought the star was well cast: ‘Mangan makes this brazen liar sheepishly appealing even when he’s being frankly appalling.’ He discovered: ‘There’s an underlying truth here to the way lies make the world go round, and an old-fashioned theatrical pleasure emerges from seeing yarns being frantically spun (…) there’s ample fun to be had and a surprisingly satisfying sting to the froth.’
The Financial Times’ Sarah Hemming noted: ‘It’s nowhere near as deep or moving as The Father, and the characters are supremely self-obsessed, but still there is something very sad about their predicament. And this clever, elusive comedy touches on profound questions about the meaning and malleability of truth.’
Caroline McGinn for Time Out declared: ‘Mangan fans won’t be disappointed, his performance is more than worth the entry fee. He is fantastically enjoyable as Michel, bringing irresistible hangdog charm and ageing himbo vibes to the character who believes he is successfully deceiving everyone around him. His epic tantrum on discovering that he is the more deceived is hilarious: utterly hypocritical, and heartfelt. Michel’s arc is the driving force of the story and when Mangan commits to his outrage, it lifts the comedy to the next level and really makes it grip.’
The Standard‘s Nicjk Curtis called the play ‘a manically effervescent, farcical comedy of manners in Lindsay Posner’s starry, polished revival (…) This is a glossy, old-fashioned West End night out, and none the worse for that.’
3 stars ⭑⭑⭑
The Times’ Clive Davis found it ‘breezes along with a wry, occasionally self-satisfied grin on its face (…) The director Lindsay Posner keeps the complications and deceptions bubbling along.’ He seemed to have left the theatre inmoved: ‘Designer Lizzie Clachan’s hotel and domestic interiors are self-consciously sterile. The psychological asides may be quintessentially French, but they’re not particularly profound.’
Matt Wolf at LondonTheatre noted: ‘The problem is that shows constructed with this sort of Swiss watch precision aren’t quite so revelatory upon renewed dissection. As someone already familiar with The Truth, I admit to sometimes feeling that I was watching a well-oiled theatrical machine cranking into gear: the play on second viewing has a faintly mechanical aspect, though the skill of the cast – led by Mangan in superlative overdrive – is never in doubt (…) Posner’s cast navigates the changes in tone and knows how to downplay the gathering reliance on contrivance and coincidence.’
2 stars ⭑⭑
For Dave Fargnoli of The Stage stated:’the action feels ponderous, the script strangely flat-footed. Here, every conversation eventually becomes trapped in repetitive rhetorical loops as the characters bat the same lines back and forth between them, systematically draining them of impact (…) Posner sets such a rattling pace, and encourages such big, explosive deliveries where more subtle responses might be more effective, that many of the text’s nuances are lost.’
Critics’ average rating 3.6⭑
Value for money 40 (Typical price combined with average rating)
The Truth can be seen at the Apollo Theatre until 12 September 2026. Buy tickets from the producers www.thetruthplay.com
If you’ve seen The Truth at the Apollo Theatre, please leave your review and/or rating below
A great cast saves this one-trick pony of rhetorical and repetitive shouty interactions. I wanted to enjoy it, but comedy is a personal taste, and this missed my funny bone by quite some margin. I have increasingly found that West End theatre audiences will laugh their heads off at the slimmest excuse to do so, and not just when watching so-called comedies. I am baffled by this trend.
I liked the actors and the bit where Stephen Mangan asked if he was in a comedy or a tragedy.
There was a lot of laughter when I saw it too… I wonder if they were paid to generate atmosphere?