Howard Brenton’s new play, directed by Tom Littler, works so well in the round and in the intimacy of the Orange Tree Theatre.
In 1942 Prime Minister Winston Churchill had a secret meeting with General Secretary Joseph Stalin in Moscow, a key moment during World War II. The conference lasted three days.
Russia is under attack and Stalingrad is about to fall. Russia wants England to invade France. England wants to delay a year. Both men are under enormous pressure and fear the other will make a deal with Hitler. Inevitably, there is mutual distrust between the English aristocrat and the Georgian peasant.
There is also a language barrier. Churchill doesn’t speak Russian. Stalin doesn’t speak English. They have to rely on their female interpreters. It is the translating, which makes Brenton’s witty play so enjoyable, and especially when the translators are diplomatically toning down what is being said.
Roger Allam as Churchill and Peter Forbes as Stalin are very convincing and have an inebriated scene on their own when they reach some sort of wordless rapprochement.
Jo Herbert and Elisabeth Snegir are well cast as the translators. So, too, are Alan Cox as Archie Clark Kerr, the suave British Ambassador, and Julius D’Silva as Commissar Molotov, a powerful presence.
The play deserves a West End transfer. Its only weakness is Stalin’s teenage daughter’s brief appearances which are intrusive and unnecessary.
The run at Richmond is already sold out but the good news is you can watch Churchill In Moscow at home via OT On Screen from 11 – 14 March 2025.
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