Reviews

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Simon Stephens

peytonhouston_'s review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

rebeccagh's review against another edition

5.0

Incredibly well crafted, by far the most ingenious and detailed script I've read. The attention to such small details of Christopher's big personality really comes through in the script layout and the scene changes. A really enjoyable read

amiably's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

this is fine as a piece of literature, but i struggle to see how it would be adapted from page to stage. the note to leave all characters on stage at all times (how would the talking ones stand out?? lighting??) combined with having to transition from set to set without pause makes it seem difficult to stage. i'll definitely watch it eventually though, really want to see what choices others made.
also,

there's one scene where the hallucination of ed, who represents christopher's doubts about himself, appears in the train station. obviously this is my interp of the play, but i feel like this would lose meaning irl and the audience wouldn't understand ed's not actually there.

also, the author of the original book this play was based on did no research on asperger's, so take it with a grain of salt. i'm not sure about the adapter.

jennchandler's review against another edition

5.0

I have read the book, seen the play, and now I've read the script. In case you can't tell, I think it's pretty great.

allexxah's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

neilrcoulter's review against another edition

4.0

I find Simon Stephens's adaptation to be more satisfying than the original novel. It removes some of the sections that I found most tedious or frustrating about the novel, and it creates some innovative ways to portray the story on stage. It helps, of course, that I got to see the National Theatre Live cinema broadcast of the play earlier this year, which was a fantastic production.

lottiexx's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

thekqy's review against another edition

4.0

category: disabled character (?)

this was fun! i would love to see this as a play! the ending was funny, and christopher is a great character. the structure of the play with all the characters interweaving, sometimes showing each other’s thoughts or christopher’s thoughts was great.

emmahowardlittlefield's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

anthonylwolf's review against another edition

5.0

Breathtaking

Christopher is such an annoying little kid you actually end up empathising with his flaws, talents and issues. The play takes your breath away multiple times with perfect rhythm and fast-paced sections, which all come together to form a compelling family story - with all the drama that may obviously occur.

And it all comes through thanks to Simon's writing and to how he crafted his characters.