Notes From Row H

Off West End theatre review – The Old Vic

One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest is playing at The Old Vic from 1^st April 2026 until 23^rd May 2026.  

This adaptation of Ken Kesey’s novel tries to be a bold reimagining of the original, and whilst there are points of strength in this production (namely the talent of the cast and it’s design), there remains several features of the play that do not quite make the production a complete success. 

Based on the book by Ken Kesey, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest was adapted for the stage by Dale Wasserman in 1963 – and over 60 years later it is being staged by Clint Dyer at the Old Vic. This production was always going to be interesting due to its subject matter, and because in this modern time, its themes we could be a cultural hot potato.  

When Randle P. McMurphy arrives in a psychiatric hospital in Oregon in 1963, he is confronted by Nurse Ratched and her iron grip on the wards’ residents. Seeing this challenge, he immediately starts causing mayhem and disrupts the tortuous lives of the other patients with his witty charm and mischievous character – much to Ratched’s vexation.

An obvious metaphor for institutional oppression, Dyer has taken it one step further and has tried to make the play an allegory for white control over black people – Ratched being white and the patients being black. I feel that this does not really land, because apart from preshow projections that tell the audience about slavery and Congo Square, it is not in the text – so it just feels disconnected from the story itself. That is not to say the ambition is not strong, but it feels like it is slightly lost.

There is also a subtle throughline of misogyny throughout the play. Despite Dyer trying to shine a light on the racism in 1960s America and give the play a new lease of life, the misogyny in the text remains unchanged. The patient backstories include an unsatisfied wife and a dominative mother, Nurse Ratched is seen as coercive and controlling, and other female characters are called prostitutes. So, there are elements of the play that feel progressive in one sense but the same and compounding in the other – and it could have gone a lot further in modernisation.

Its treatment of disability and mental illness was outdated and an uncomfortable viewing. Sometimes it felt like both were being used as a spectacle rather than a narrative tool. 

All that being said though, the cast are superb. Aaron Pierre as McMurphy is suitably cheeky and rebellious, but also balances that out with flashes of anger and violence that bring the character to life. Olivia Williams (who took over the role from Michelle Gomez in rehearsals) as Nurse Ratched is commanding and oozes cold control. Giles Terera as Dale Harding is wittedly suave and provides much needed of the comedic relief. Arthur Boan as Chief Bromden narrates and grounds the play and helps to give the narrative a touch of humanity. 

Being in the round, and especially with the Old Vic’s decorative features and architecture, it really makes the entire atmosphere very immersive. Add to that Ben Stones’ set and costume design with checkered green and white tiles, white walls and green jumpsuits, and the ward comes to life. The most impressive and visually striking aspect though is Chris Davey’s lighting design, which flickers between the ward and its dark undertones and helps to layer the narrative and build tension.  

Despite the talented cast and the incredible production, I feel that it is the attempted modernisation of the text that brings this play down. I can see the ambition and the attempt to make it a bold reimagination – but its depiction of mental illness and disability, its vein of misogyny and its attempt to make the text about racism and control, makes this adaptation a slight miss for me.  

Written by Helena Featherstone