Viewfinder: the … But the piece stands or falls by the dialogue and interactions that precede the denouement, and for much of the first 30 minutes or so, it definitely wobbles. They're also not quite what they seem. Her organisation has helped Andrew seek asylum in Moscow, but her assistance comes at a price. With what I believe is a genuine innocence of imagination, each of his plays is political, fresh and plays with form in a way that consistently produces something original. Wild is playing at the Hampstead Theatre, London, until July 16. It suggests the audience should consider what they have seen as not merely political but metaphysical. Wild, Hampstead Theatre . In June 2013, Edward Snowden became a global cause célèbre after lifting the lid on the mass surveillance programmes of US intelligence organisations. Hampstead Theatre has been in NW3 for over 50 years, occupying one of London’s state-of-the-art theatres, and attracting audiences from all over the globe. Wild becomes a wild ride indeed: one that will leave you utterly gripped, at the edge of your seat... and one that will, I hope, allow the reader forgive such clichéd turns of phrase. Each claims not to know the other. Hampstead theatre, London NW3 This edgy tale of a Snowden-type whistleblower is over-reliant on its stagey finale Wild is playing at the Hampstead Theatre, London, until July 16. Wild review – the erosion of identity 3 / 5 stars 3 out of 5 stars. A basic hotel room, wonderfully designed by Miriam Buether, is where we find Andrew (Jack Farthing). The first of three Hampstead Theatre titles, each one streaming online for a week (Beth Steel’s prize-winning Wonderland is next), Wild surely contains the most directly pertinent physical scenario to our own upended society in its story of a 28-year-old American, Andrew (a sympathetic Jack Farthing, pictured below), experiencing the equivalent of lockdown in a Moscow hotel room. Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically. Wild begins as a play about the dilemma of a whistleblower; it ends as a drama about the erosion of identity. For further information visit the theatre’s website here . The first of three Hampstead Theatre titles, each one streaming online for a week (Beth Steel’s prize-winning Wonderland is next), Wild surely contains the most directly pertinent physical scenario to our own upended society in its story of a 28-year-old American, Andrew (a sympathetic Jack Farthing, pictured below), experiencing the equivalent of lockdown in a Moscow hotel room. Mike Bartlett’s darkly comic new play explores the unexpected, bewildering, and life-changing consequences of challenging the status quo at a global level. We rely on advertising to help fund our award-winning journalism. Under the surface of a mystery thriller, Bartlett is, in fact, dealing with the ethical and political consequences of Snowden’s 2013 revelations. Wild by Mike Bartlett. Inspired by the Edward Snowden affair, Wild sets itself in a hotel room in Moscow, with twenty-eight-year- old, KFC-consuming Andrew (Jack Farthing), who – with the touch of a button – has leaked critical confidential files turning him into America’s Most Wanted man. However, whilst absurdly annoying, statements including ‘You have no privacy really, you have no rights’, with references to the ‘Ballad box…we’re just guessing’, not only makes the writing topical and relevant, but furthermore provides an intellectual understanding suggesting she is not as kooky as she appears. Wild at Hampstead Theatre – Review June 26, 2016 Last updated: June 24, 2019 10:36 pm By Joseph Winer Caoilfhionn Dunne (Woman) and Jack Farthing (Andrew) in Wild at Hampstead Theatre. As the State grows more powerful because of technology, and technology grows more powerful because of the State, where do the self-appointed protectors of the rights of the citizen stand? Dunne also lends the female protector an aura of tantalising instability, while Mackay as her male equivalent exudes a perceptible menace, so that even the unzipping of a briefcase becomes a potential threat. Since, however, they are only named as Woman (Caoilfhionn Dunne) and Man (John Mackay), neither he nor we can be wholly sure of their veracity. Wild is available to view on Hampstead Theatre’s YouTube channel from 30 th March until 5 th April 2020. I find a lot to challenge in Bartlett’s arguments. Related Items featured review Location. For further information visit the theatre’s website here . Caoilfhionn Dunne and Jack Farthing in Wild at Hampstead Theatre. Caoilfhionn Dunne’s distaff interrogator tosses off references to Graham Greene and Oscar Wilde – in that respect, Bartlett ’s title is a tease – all the while keeping a bewildered Andrew on edge. But as a bespectacled Andrew conveys a gathering alarm at the stripping away of all certainties, who amongst us won’t feel a pang of recognition as a play called Wild comes to describe our own lives as well?