Clyde’s at the Donmar Warehouse – Reviews ★★★★

"A glorious kitchen drama that's like The Bear... but better"

"Double Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lynn Nottage's new work about ex-cons trying to create the perfect sandwich is uproarious fun with a serious undertow"

"It seems writer Lynn Nottage can turn just about anything into dramatic gold. Hot on the heels of Mlima’s Tale at the Kiln, about the international ivory trade, comes this glorious, humane and penetrating comedy about ex-cons trying to create the perfect gourmet sandwich in a Pennsylvania truckstop kitchen. It’s uproarious fun with a serious undertow – like cult TV hit The Bear, but better."

"Lynette Linton’s production is rich in detail and texture and features gorgeous performances from two of her acting muses. The chameleonic Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo is vibrant, vulnerable Letitia, jailed for stealing drugs for her disabled daughter (and some oxytocin and Adderall to sell on the side). Giles Terera takes a back seat as the guru who inspires her and the rest of the team with visions of “intangible grace” between sliced bread."

"The sandwich stuff is daft: the characters go into rhapsodies about fantasy fillings and break into dance routines with their mobile food-preparation stations. But it’s invested with such glee and sass that it works."

"... Nottage is a writer bold enough to juggle profundity and absurdity, and Linton understands that balance perfectly. Together with this cast, they create an exuberantly vital atmosphere. It’s an ensemble piece, but Adékoluẹjo stands out."

"Lynn Nottage wires us into American life with her all-consuming truck-stop cafe drama"

"Few playwrights can shake the stage like Lynn Nottage. The reverberations are even stronger when her work is directed by Lynette Linton."

"The zing and rawness of a kitchen in a truck-stop sandwich cafe in Reading, Pennsylvania is vividly conjured by designer Frankie Bradshaw"

"Nottage wires me more deeply into American life than Arthur Miller ever has. Clyde’s is not as mighty as Sweat – the play doesn’t altogether avoid the sentimentality at which it laughs. Yet it is always vital; there is not a single limp moment. Linton’s direction lifts the drama to another level, making it one of the best evenings in the stalls I’ve had this year."

"Blue collar grit meets sitcom humour in a great play"

"... Nottage, who explored blue-collar woes in the factory drama Sweat, wraps her message in fizzing dialogue and snarky exchanges, which wouldn’t be out of place in a top-notch sitcom. Over the course of a brisk 100 minutes with no interval you really do care about what happens to her characters. Miller gives you dignified mannequins; Nottage deals in sweat-and-blood humanity."

"Lynette Linton’s exuberant revival sits neatly in the Donmar’s intimate space."

"Giles Terera is superb as Montrellous, the sage who gives his colleagues a sense of purpose by encouraging them to experiment with ever more ambitious ingredients."

"Lynn Nottage’s warm-hearted ‘Clyde’s’"

"Lynette Linton’s joyous staging keeps us on that knife-edge, sprinkling surreal moments into the action. Metaphors that could land heavily are delivered with a pinch of salt, especially by Giles Terera, whose superb depiction of the mysterious Montrellous is perfectly pitched."

"Following his guidance, Nottage assembles a handful of damaged characters who gradually meld together into a perfect combination. That journey is beautifully traced by Linton, who has a gift for bringing characters to life in a way that makes it hard to part with them. Here, she has a terrific cast."

"Ronke Adékoluejo’s vibrant, defensive Letitia learns to trust. She is outstanding and this is a glorious, funny and touching production of a play that argues fiercely for rehabilitation, redemption and hope."

"Crunchy kitchen drama is a dish to be savoured"

"Clyde runs a mean sandwich shop, while Montrellous is the sensei of sourdough, in Lynn Nottage’s mouthwatering play"

"Lynn Nottage’s mouthwatering, gloriously performed play inhabits an unprepossessing Pennsylvania sandwich shop which Clyde runs on fear. Mean as a buzzsaw, Gbemisola Ikumelo’s buttock-pummelling terror bobs up at the service window without warning – like Jaws but much, much scarier."

"Giles Terera brings delicious gravity to Montrellous, the sensei of sourdough, crowning his creations with a mic drop of dill."

"Nottage’s writing slathers on the metaphors: a democratic snack that can be scorned or elevated, the sandwich becomes a readymade image of broken America. Lynette Linton’s production, however, is all yum."

"A mouthwatering kitchen drama from one of America’s finest"

"Lynn Nottage's blisteringly funny play about a group of ex-convicts working in a truck stop diner will leave you drooling"

"Nottage’s tight focus allows to get to know these individuals, who are written off by society because of one mistake. In fact, they’re rather too saintly – they make Jean Valjean look like Charles Manson."

"... Linton has assembled the perfect ingredients for a dynamic, humane, laugh-out-loud evening. Giles Terera, an Olivier winner for Hamilton, brings musicality and grace to Montrellous... But the star-making turn is the luminous Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́ as Tish, whose fast-talking swagger and animated physicality cover a world of hurt."

"Beautifully paced"

"A delicious cast adds zest and flavour to Lynn Nottage’s serious-minded comedy"

"... there are certainly dozens of flavours in Lynn Nottage’s latest play, Clyde’s. That they don’t quite make a wholly satisfying meal is certainly not the fault of Lynette Linton’s frankly delicious production."

"... although Nottage has much to say about life beyond prison and the class circumstances that led to incarceration in the first place, she has framed it within a laugh-out-loud comedy. The play’s problems, however, are less social, more structural."

"Giles Terera lends high dignity to the dreamer Montrellous; Sebastian Orozco flashes his contained power as jittery Rafael; Gibson simmers with self-loathing; and Ronkẹ Adékoluéjó ricochets between bragging and self-doubt, put-downs and pick-me-ups. Dancing with delight, she spits fire, igniting even the most throwaway line with a zest that’s simply joyous. Awards panels take note."

"Linton’s beautifully paced conducting of this quintet of tremendous performances more than papers over the play’s cracks."

"Pulitzer winner Lynn Nottage’s new drama fails to convince"

"Imperfect though the play is, Nottage’s insights into marginalised lives are always to be welcomed – and the cast serve up tasty performances"

"Sweat made the name of director Lynette Linton, who is at the helm again here. Yet lightning hasn’t stuck twice, as Clyde’s is uneven and overly schematic. Nottage offers a mouth-watering selection of ingredients, which she frustratingly fails to cook to perfection."

"Spirited though the performances undoubtedly are, none of the actors manages to make complete sense of their characters. Nottage has not given them enough to go on, although Adekoluejo and Terera work hard to add shading and depth."

"At the Donmar another fêted playwright’s latest show is lighter but less interesting."

"Here, she reunites with the director (Lynette Linton) and one cast member (Patrick Gibson) who helped to take Sweat from the Donmar to the West End. It’s hard to see the same happening for this tale of four ex-cons cooking up second chances in the kitchen of a truck-stop diner."

"She has, however, written a play where lots gets said but little happens. The ex-cons are delightful; the female boss, Clyde, is a boorish bully. It sprouts a few funny or touching moments late on, and it’s nicely played. And that’s about it for 90 minutes."