Simon McBurney directs this vivid account of one man’s slide into a terrible situation and his efforts to get himself out of it. Here is what critics have been saying about it: 

The Guardian: **** “With dazzling virtuosity, McBurney and his team evoke a vanished world.”

The Independent: ***** “an extraordinarily compelling piece of theatre.”

The Telegraph:*** “even as an ardent fan I have to confess to being more stupefied than swept away by this collaboration with Berlin’s radical-spirited Schaubühne theatre.”

WhatsOnStage: ***** “an illuminating explosion of Zweig’s story, which can so easily seem slight and sentimental.”

The Stage: **** “Simon McBurney’s production has a hypnotic quality.”

Evening Standard: **** “may be a little slow to exert its power yet speaks to the present cacophonous moment.”

The Reviews Hub: **** 1/2 “Beware of Pity does demand a lot from its audience and, while it builds tension superbly, there are arguably a few too many dramatic moments that occasionally make it feel longer than it is.”

The Upcoming: **** “A perfect marriage of theatrical experimentation and an evocative novel, Beware of Pity evokes our awe, our disgust and our pity too.”

British Theatre Guide: “Fans of this kind of presentation will undoubtedly lap up Beware of Pity, while other viewers might struggle to take in both the wordy surtitles needed for those that are not German speakers and the sometimes incongruous visual effects. Either way, the plot itself is strong and moving.”

Tickets for Beware of Pity at the Barbican have now sold out but for more information about the live stream tomorrow (12th February) can be found here: https://www.barbican.org.uk/theatre/event-detail.asp?ID=20263