It is a very bad day for the chief of police. After 10 years languishing in prison, the state's last remaining political prisoner is insisting on taking an oath of loyalty to the country and its leader, and must therefore be released. Attempts by an enthusiastic police sergeant to act as an agent provocateur and stir up dissension among the population have failed as the people persistently refuse to break the law. The consequences of all this are gradually dawning on the chief of police even as he tries to bribe the political prisoner to remain a dissident. For the police and the criminal, the secret service and the revolutionary are entirely dependent on each other. You can't have one without the other. Can you even have such a thing as loyalty if there is no disloyalty?
Written in 1958 by the Polish playwright Slawomir Mrozek as a satire on the totalitarian state, The Police serves pretty well for today too, not least because, as adaptor Anders Lustgarten suggests, you need an enemy if you are going to wage a war on terror. Despite the orange Guantánamo-style prison suits, director Christopher Loscher never overplays the contemporary relevance in a production that demonstrates good acting, flair and confidence.
Designer Tim Sykes gives the evening a stylish 1950s spin, adding some nice touches - from the crime scene taping-off of the entrance to the theatre, to the drama's final explosive moments. A case of really bringing the house down. Watch out for the agent provocateur in the cafe beforehand, too.
A small show in an eastern European absurdist style that offers few surprises to anyone who has seen the work of Vaclav Havel, but this is a well thought out evening that really pays attention to detail. Promising stuff.
· Until February 18. Box office: 020-7223 2223
