The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Writer: Adapted by Simon Stephen from the novel by Mark Haddon
Director: Hannah Goodwin
Belvoir Street Theatre
August 17 – September 22, 2024
Against a minimalist set (Zoë Atkinson) consisting of pale grey squares Christopher (Daniel R. Nixon) introduces himself and his special education teacher, Shiobhan (Brigid Zengeni), who will also narrate part of his story from the book he has written about his adventures.
Christopher Boone is a 15-year-old boy who, while brilliant at mathematics, perceives and interprets the world in unorthodox ways – it is his perspective on the world that is presented to the audience. His disabilities are never specifically named but the fact that he has a special education teacher who helps him comprehend the bewildering labyrinth of social expectations, is revelatory. Christopher does not like to be touched, has disconnected thinking, cannot lie and when stressed paces about, repeating prime numbers, of which he has memorised several thousand.
Living with his widowed father, Christopher’s adventures begin the night he discovers the body of his neighbour’s dog, Wellington, speared to death with a pitchfork. Christopher loves animals and is bereft at the death of his canine friend. As befits an intrepid schoolboy, he resolves to solve the murder.
The events which follow take a severe toll on Christopher, but also provide him with challenges which, seemingly insurmountable to such a neurodivergent personality, allow him to achieve a sense of independence. He discovers that his mother is not dead, and his father Ed (Brandon McClelland) is forced to admit that he lied – Judy Boone (Matilda Ridgway) and her lover (Nick Brown), who happens to be their neighbour, Mrs Spear’s husband, are living in London. Ed also admits that he killed Wellington who tried to attack him, thus solving one part of the puzzle, but presenting Christopher with a new set of dilemmas.
These revelations throw Christopher into a catatonic state, but he resolves to go to London to find his mother, and against all odds, and with the kindly assistance of strangers, he locates her. Judy is delighted to see her son and resolves to stay close to him.
Having achieved closure on these two important issues Christopher returns to his first love, mathematics – he sits his A-level exam and succeeds with honours. We have a happy sense that this bodes well for him – he intends going to university and perhaps becoming an astronaut.
Ultimately, we are left wondering about the influence of such imperfect parents on a personality such as Christopher’s. Though they clearly love their son, they also expose him to examples of negative social behaviour – lying to him, manipulating each other, and indulging in infidelity. Could Christopher’s symptoms be exacerbated by the effects of such an environment? Fortunately, there is the comforting sense that his supportive teacher and school environment, as well as his studies, may alleviate some of these negative effects.
Despite some of the bleaker aspects of the story, the production has a cheerful energy and considerable humour which arises out of Christopher’s dislike of metaphor and purely literal interpretation of language.
In his scarlet costume (Zoë Atkinson) against the grey set Daniel R. Nixon is superb as Christopher and Hannah Goodwin’s assured and imaginative direction gives this production its theatrical heft. The stellar supporting cast are all excellent and handle several roles each with panache.
The play ends on a cheerfully upbeat note, with a full cast song-and-dance number, the lyrics of which amusingly hint at the solving of a mathematical problem Christopher has set the audience. We find ourselves rooting for Christopher’s continued success in this theatrical experience which is well worth the visit.
