Shifters Reviews at the Duke of York’s Theatre London

"This epic new romcom has West End audiences swooning" (Duke of York's Theatre London)

"With fine performances from Tosin Cole and Heather Agyepong, Benedict Lombe’s will-they-won’t-they love story – which has high profile backing from Idris Elba, Little Simz and Maya Jama – is another fresh hit originating from the Bush Theatre"

"The joy of Benedict Lombe’s will-they-won’t-they love story isn’t just the inventive, emotionally astute writing – it’s the fevered reactions it gets from the crowd who hang on tight through every twist and turn."

"Like Nick Payne’s 2012 hit West End two-hander Constellations, Shifters is a love story with big themes woven through it – and sometimes its musings on destiny, memory and trauma risk overwhelming it. But it’s got a real, welcome lightness too. Lombe’s dialogue beautifully captures the way these lovers trip up on their own words."

"Cole and Agyepong have got an undeniable chemistry in these central roles, but there’s always something deeper simmering away underneath, too – Cole exposes layer after layer of pain underneath his perma-smile, while Agyepong gives glimpses of vulnerability before building her walls up again, higher than before."

"Gorgeous piece of storytelling" (Duke of York's Theatre London)

"West End transfer of Benedict Lombe’s lyrically brilliant romantic comedy is bittersweet and tender"

"Benedict Lombe’s gorgeous piece of storytelling, directed by Lynette Linton, makes a well-deserved transfer from the Bush Theatre to the West End. It’s funny, grounded in authenticity and blessed with a pair of leads whose charisma pulls you effortlessly into its bittersweet tenderness."

"Her [Lombe's] brilliant ear for the cadence of their changing lives, including the darker notes, is energising."

"Heather Agyepong and Tosin Cole, both returning from the original production, make every line sing: they’re hugely funny, but teetering on the edge of heartbreak. Cole brings easy charm to Dre and a faltering smile that speaks volumes. Agyepong’s Des bristles with self-protection, but also a compassionate curiosity that cracks her own defences."

"Touching two-hander redefines the romcom" (Duke of York's Theatre London)

"Benedict Lombe’s play about an on-again, off-again relationship is beautifully realised"

"... Lombe has a warm, seductive style of her own, slipping from sharp comedy to meditative soulfulness in an instant. In Lynette Linton’s deftly modulated production, the show plays like a piece of jazz, looping back and forth between past and present, returning to one highly charged encounter in particular."

"It’s hard to imagine it better performed than by Heather Agyepong (Des) and Tosin Cole (Dre), who build up a wonderfully intimate rapport with the audience, even in this bigger space (the production premiered at the small-scale Bush Theatre, where Linton is artistic director)."

"It’s another gorgeous winner from Linton and her theatre."

"Glorious, tender and profound" (Duke of York's Theatre London)

"In Lynette Linton's glorious two-hander, Tosin Cole and Heather Agyepong make for a terrific pairing"

"There is great family sadness in both of their backgrounds and its weight on these young people manifests itself in unexpected ways. Dre is smitten from the start, but Des is wary, hiding something, always darting away from those vital moments of unfiltered emotional intimacy."

"Agyepong and Cole make for a terrific pairing, confidently and fluidly shepherded by Linton. His Dre has sad eyes but easy and honest charm, while her Des is sharp and spiky, with well-honed defence mechanisms and enough self-awareness to understand that success, academic or professional, can sometimes be achieved as part of a quest to avoid something else."

"Time-travel love story with thermonuclear charisma" (Duke of York's Theatre London)

"Benedict Lombe’s multilayered romance benefits from the charm of its two leads at the Duke of York in London"

"Much excitement has preceded the transfer of Benedict Lombe’s nuanced, beautifully affecting love story from the Bush Theatre — only the third play by a black woman yet to have made it to the West End."

"The Duke of York’s Theatre has been reconfigured so that audience members sit on either side of the stage, bringing an added intimacy to this deftly configured journey through different times and dimensions."

"For all its structural cleverness — with its echoes of Nick Payne’s hit play Constellations — it’s the warmth and subtlety of Lombe’s emotional insights that give the script its megawatt appeal."

"A huge part of the appeal of Lynette Linton’s production is the thermonuclear charisma of both leads."

"No wonder Idris Elba and Maya Jama backed this superb romcom" (Duke of York's Theatre London)

"Following its sold-out run at the Bush, this bittersweet love story richly deserves its West End transfer and left its audience whooping"

"The audience wills them on so much that when their attraction finally explodes in a searing kiss, the audience loudly sighs and whoops in appreciation."

"Cole (who recently starred in Netflix’s Supacell) and Agyepong are evenly matched in chemistry and the subtleties of expression while Linton’s direction skilfully deploys silence to ensure those nuances land. One small niggle: Des’s monologue about the underlying cause of her defensiveness feels bolted on to a play that otherwise offers a lovely, light-hearted study of the power of love."

"Drama of first love lost has giddy kisses and real heart" (Bush Theatre London)

"Benedict Lombe questions ideas around abuse, grief and the Black body in this meet-again-cute starring Tosin Cole and Heather Agyepong"

"Cole, known better for his screen roles, proves he is as adept on stage, while Agyepong is full of fire. They capture the awkwardness of young love, and of what is unsaid when they meet years later. Sarcasm covers for teen shyness, sexual tension morphs into bathos, disagreements about Nigerian or Congolese music are proxy flirtations. There is ardour beneath it all and when the pair kiss, it feels real, giddy."

"The play’s structure has clever loops, but alongside this overarching concept is real heart, soul and the everyday tragedy of long-lost first loves."

"Forget One Day, this is pretty much the perfect bittersweet rom-com" (Bush Theatre London)

"This is a fresh and delightful romantic drama, beautifully written and acted"

"Benedicte Lombe’s new play is a pretty-much perfect, bittersweet modern rom-com."

"Director Lynette Linton draws achingly subtle, detailed performances from her two leads, which showcase the fine grain of Lombe’s writing."

"Cole’s Dre has a receptive, loose-limbed ease and vulnerability on stage, while Agyepong’s Des is initially more sardonic and sharp. The design, and the jump-cuts of the narrative sometimes recall Nick Payne’s Constellations... But Shifters marks her out as a singular voice, following the promise of her debut monologue, Lava, also staged at the Bush."

"One major revelation about Des feels unearned, and a late medley recapping snatches of the couple’s relationship is counter-productively confusing. It may seem absurd to say it but this 100-minute show goes on just slightly too long. These are minor quibbles, though, about a fresh and delightful romantic drama, beautifully written and acted."

"An exquisitely poetic, warm-hearted romance between two lonely souls" (Bush Theatre London)

"A rising star of British theatre, Benedict Lombe follows her lauded debut about black identity with a tender portrayal of human connection"

"What ends up unfolding is about much more than romantic love; rather, amid grief and loss, two lonely souls have found a connection they keep coming back to. Perhaps this makes Shifters sound sombre, but it is genuinely very funny. Lombe’s writing, suffused with wit and warmth, is exquisitely poetic at times."

"Cole, best known for starring as one of Jodie Whittaker’s companions in Doctor Who, is superb at finding those moments and letting the mask slip amid the laughs."

"Less compelling is the decision to underpin the drama with the concept of cosmic fate (Dre and Des are short for Dream and Destiny). Elaborate speeches on “big ideas” feel full of hackneyed old tropes – a shame when the rest of the script feels so fresh."

"At the heart of this drama is the connection between the two leads, at once electric and sweetly endearing. It’s a confident follow-up from a rising star of British theatre."

"Benedict Lombe’s new play about two almost-lovers is alive and unpredictable" (Bush Theatre London)

"If I were running London theatre, I would put Lynette Linton in as artistic director of the Young Vic... Her production of Shifters brings together – fervently and precisely – writing, acting and design talent."

"This new play is still more gifted. Shifters is partly about the way memories stain the way we see the present. Yet every moment feels on the pulse and precarious; no reactions are predictable."

"Agyepong and Cole are tremendous at suggestion and suppression. They move around each other as if magnetised, their dialogue half-mimicking, half-challenging, with humour blowing away sentimentality."

"I can’t remember being in the theatre when each new twist was accompanied by so many squeals, exasperated sighs and urgings-on. Shared breath between audience and actors."

"A love story easy to fall in love with" (Bush Theatre London)

"... this new two-hander of hers is so good — laugh-out-loud funny and tears-to-the-eyes moving"

"Grounded in cultural specifics but universal in its appeal, Shifters is a mercurial, quick-witted yet poetic examination of love, memories and grief."

"The premise may suggest something of almost rom-com banality but the result, in the Bush artistic director Lynette Linton’s wonderfully deft, engaging and charismatically-acted production, is anything but. Part of it is the rhythm of Lombe’s writing, a perceptive and exhilarating blend of fast, smart banter and philosophical sensitivity. But it is also down to the enormously attractive and nuanced portrayals by Heather Agyepong, as Des, and Tosin Cole as Dre."

"Lombe’s touching, emotionally intelligent and contemporary black British love story is itself easy to fall in love with."

"Benedict Lombe’s drama about two old flames who can’t get over each other is smouldering and soulful" (Bush Theatre London)

"The beginning of Lynette Linton’s production is a deliberate slow burn. The romance between the duo creeps in slowly, but once it lands it tugs on your heartstrings tight. Tosin Cole and Heather Agyepong are entirely adorable and subtle as the couple: they balance jealousy with banter, familiarity with awkward teenage love."

"There are similarities to Nick Payne’s ‘Constellations’, and it has the sprawling scope of a love story that spans a lifetime. There’s a few tiny gripes: it might take a moment too long to kick into action; a revelation about Des appears to come from nowhere; we want more on their individual backstories. But Lombe is a beautiful, nuanced and soulful writer and this is a romance overflowing with heart."