We all know that the assassination of Franz Ferdinand was some kind of catalyst for World War I. But playwright Rajiv Joseph isn’t interested in any standard history, nor the man who gives his play a title. His novel take, like his characters, is “a bit messed up”. But Archduke is memorable for its surreal moments and mad figures.
Es Devlin’s excellent design takes us underground. The action starts in a tunnel, with strangers played by Stanley Morgan, Abraham Popoola and Chris Walley meeting with little idea they are part of a murderous plot. The trio seem a little… simple. Their stupidity is funny, if a tad cruel, and the cast brings some excellent physical comedy. None of the men has long to live – they all have tuberculosis – and their desperation suggest a biopolitical motive for events.
The humour continues as a mad mastermind lectures the men – recruited as his “boys” – about regicide (he has form) and nationalism. Max Wootton has a brilliant time in the role, taking us to a 19th-century manosphere, his influencing suitably over the top. Meanwhile an ailurophobic maid asks moral questions and makes a cake. In the role, Janice Connolly provides tension as well as getting laughs.
Archduke works a lot better than you might think. Lyndsey Turner’s direction is swift, Joseph’s writing sharp and, best of all, there are plenty of surprises. It is an achievement to cover such common ground yet command an audience to question what comes next.
The incompetence of the plotters deflates their sinister objective, despite the serious consequences. There are plenty of random events, as well as misinformed and ill-judged decisions. As a final twist, the action becomes, oddly, believable. Joseph complicates the idea of conspiracy by making chance, coercion and human frailty as important as ideology. In doing so, he may end up taking us closer to the truth.
Until 25 July 2026
Photo by Helen Murray