Touching the Void | London Theatre: Stagedoor

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6 November 2019 · Follow on Stagedoor

“Joe Simpson’s book about breaking a leg on the unclimbed face of the 21,000 foot high Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes is not just a great story about adventure and survival but a nail-biting story of trust, moral dilemmas and friendship. It might seem like an impossible piece to transpose to the stage but that is exactly what playwright David Greig and director Tom Morris have done in a show that has already won over audiences in Edinburgh, Bristol and Northampton. Now they’re bringing its snow-caped peaks and deep crevasses to the West End stage.”

Overview

Following its sell-out world-premiere in 2018, “Tom Morris’ most accomplished project since War Horse” (The Telegraph) transfers to London.

What happens when you look death squarely in the face and how do you find the strength to crawl back towards life?

Joe Simpson’s best-selling memoir, turned BAFTA-winning film, charts his struggle for survival in the Andes in 1985. The heart of the story is Joe Simpson’s mental battle as he teeters on the brink of death and despair in a crevasse from which he can’t possibly climb to safety.

Alongside this is the appalling dilemma of Simon Yates, perched on an unstable snow-cliff, battered by freezing winds and desperate to rescue his injured climbing partner who hangs from a rope below him.

Critic reviews

Real-life story of man left for dead on mountain leaves you breathless

⋅ Evening Standard

A white-knuckle adaptation to take you to the top of the world

⋅ The Telegraph

Gripping journey into the mind of a survivor

⋅ The Times

Strikingly designed and excruciatingly tense staging of Joe Simpson's mountaineering memoir

⋅ The Stage

Considering the hardship of bringing such an untheatrical story to the West End, the overall result is actually commendable

⋅ The Upcoming

An admirable feat of ingenuity

⋅ Broadway World

A penetrating portrayal of the impulse of human survival, against the odds

⋅ London Theatre

David Greig's much-lauded mountaineering story doesn't quite peak

⋅ The Arts Desk

David Greig finds humour amid the horror in this triumphant stage adaptation of the mountaineering memoir

⋅ The Guardian (Bristol run)

It's a work with flaws but it also contains the most visceral 15 minutes of theatre you will likely see this year

⋅ WhatsOnStage (Bristol run)

The scenes seem clichéd and contrived

⋅ London Box Office

While there are certainly flaws to Touching the Void they don’t deduct the essential power of this incredible story

Exeunt (Bristol run)

A truly inspiring story about the limitless depths of human bravery

⋅ A Younger Theatre

Gripping and exciting account of true events on the Peruvian Andes

⋅ Everything Theatre

Creatives

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Cast

Date & time

Show ended

Sat 9 Nov - Sat 29 Feb, 2.30pm & 7.30pm

Runtime: 2 hrs 25 mins

Venue

Duke of York's Theatre

St Martin's Lane WC2N 4BG London, UK · Get Directions

4.2

out of 5 stars

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