Find out how critics have been reacting to Morgan Lloyd Malcolm’s thriller, playing until the 30th May.
Broadway World: “Jealously, rivalry, motherhood, and various kinds of inferiority complexes fuel the characters, leading them to act irrationally. Impulse and premeditation come into question in a twisted game of blame that deliciously leads to the lack of an answer. The script is a cornucopia of themes and provocations, but Haddrell’s production struggles to establish the right atmosphere for it to thrive.”
The Guardian: “As a revenge thriller bearing Hitchcockian aspirations, it is original but ultimately lacks enough of a killer sting.”
London Theatre 1: “Still, there are some intriguing points about how actions really do have consequences in this quirky and somewhat introspective production.”
Everything Theatre: “Hercules and Ibrahim excel at the awkwardness, and you can feel the confusion and the distance between Heather and Carla. As things become darker and the power dynamics begin to shift first slowly and then quite radically, the performances shift with them. Hercules shows Heather’s growing control and confidence, while Ibrahim’s Carla gradually loses some of her cocky self-assurance, along with what little control she thinks she has.”
All That Dazzles: “Morgan Lloyd Malcolm has proven time and time again what a gifted writer she is, with the play she produced after The Wasp, Emilia , winning multiple Olivier Awards. Malcolm’s talent for writing is never in question, and The Wasp is another fine example of that, filling itself with intrigue and promise. The very different nature of both women in the story leads to some fantastic contrasts that Malcolm relishes the opportunity to explore, filling the story with a shifting tone, veering from moments of comedy to a gradually darker premise that proves more and more unsettling.”
The Reviews Hub: “The Wasp, a two-hander featuring Cassandra Hercules and Serin Ibrahim, echoes in a modern way the psychological thrillers of the late 1980s and early 1990s, female-led films such as Single White Female and The Hand That Rocks the Cradle, silly but nonetheless entertaining. Although the genre is making a comeback with
movies such as The Housemaid, Morgan Lloyd Malcom’s play still feels a little old-fashioned, but it’s no surprise that it was given the film treatment in 2024.”
London Theatre Reviews.co.uk: “Overall, I think the premise of The Wasp is interesting enough but it could do with some finer tweaks to ensure that the tension remains strong throughout.”
A Young(ish) Perspective: “Despite being somewhat rough around the edges, the core of this play is truly gripping. The audience hangs on every word and the constant twists make it impossible to guess where the story will end up. It’s an admirable effort to bring a killer script to life in a challengingly intimate venue.”
Plays To See: “Malcolm packs in a great deal — class, privilege, motherhood, infertility, revenge and the long shadow of childhood cruelty — and like the wasp of the title, the play does get under your skin. But it occasionally strains under the weight of its own ambition, and a few too many twists tip it towards melodrama before the curtain falls. A gripping, well-performed night out, and it delivers much of the sting it promises.”
Theatre Vibe.co.uk: “I found The Wasp full of tension building to an unexpected climax with many surprising twists along the way and recommend its thrilling plotting.”
Theatre Weekly: “It is not easy to write a two-handed thriller, but this one succeeds beyond expectations. It is an intriguing, compelling and intense evening about living with trauma in childhood and the sometimes dramatic consequences of it later in life. Highly recommended.”
To book tickets visit: https://southwarkplayhouse.co.uk/productions/the-wasp/