Charlie + Striptease by Slawomir Mrozek, The Golden Goose Theatre, 145 Camberwell New Rd, London SE5 | until 9 May 2026 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review by William Russell

Photo credit: Paddy Gormley

Charlie + Striptease

by Slawomir Mrozek

The Golden Goose Theatre, 145 Camberwell New Rd, London SE5 | until 9 May 2026

⭐⭐⭐⭐ Review by William Russell

“Thought provoking and well acted tale for today.”

The Polish dramatist Slawomir Mrozek is writing about the Soviet world under Stalin when people were subject to surveillance and they had to conform to the rules of the state regardless. That other time, however, may be in the past but what he has to say is every bit as relevant to societies today and the plight of the protagonists in the two plays could just as easily be facing them in Trump's America as in Putin's Russia. Directed by Orsolya Nagy they are very well performed by Rowland D Hill and Simon Brandon, who appear in both plays, and Kenneth Michaels who only appears in Charlie. Theatre of the absurd can be tricky but both plays do have something to say about societies in which freedom is a myth beneath the laughter. It is arguably in Striptease that this comes across best. Two men formally addressed carrying identical brief cases find themselves in a room from which they cannot leave. They discuss their situation. One worries, one complacent. After all he has done nothing wrong, broken no rules. Then a hand appears through a curtain behind them indicating what they must do – and bit by bit they remove their clothes which are taken away by the hand until by the end they too are called upon to go with the final hand to whatever fate awaits outside the room. That is not a plot spoiler – the trajectory of the play is inevitable. The men are not rebels, just good citizens willing to observe rules which they do not actually question. In Charlie it is a question of who should live, who has the right to shoot other people that confronts an optician when a patient is brought to have his eyes tested by his grandson. It is frequently a very funny evening, but equally one laden with menace and both plays should stimulate discussion afterwards.

Cast

Rowland D Hill – Oculist, Mr 1

Simon Brandon – Grandson, Mr 11

Kenneth Michaels – Grandpa, Hand 1,

Orsolya Nagy – Hand 2

Creatives

Director - Orsolya Nagy

Lighting Design – Matthew Bliss

Technical Operator – Keegan Goodman