The thing about a show set in a psychiatric ward is that by the end of it, one isn’t quite sure what or whom to believe, although it is, at least in this particular context, pretty evident that the ward itself is not the figment of any character’s imagination. Almost everything else, however, is a matter of perspective. Nurse Ratched (Olivia Williams), the ward’s matron, insists on keeping the patients busy by way of a set routine of daily chores and meetings (and if I’ve understood correctly, meetings about meetings). But as new patient Randle P. McMurphy (Aaron Pierre) points out, he intends to urinate in the latrine rather than eat from its surface, so Ratched’s insistence on spotlessness inside and out is beyond ridiculous.
Having white medical staff and mostly black patients (the orderlies, or patient care assistants as they might well be called these days, are also predominantly black) introduces a race-relations dynamic to proceedings, beyond that of the presence of Chief Bromden (Arthur Boan), a Native American. The script makes no direct reference to race, such that the production felt it necessary to provide some context, displayed on stage pre and post-show. Ratched’s sneering, looking down at the patients from an upstairs platform and talking at them using a microphone, demonstrates her craving for power, even when she already has it.
Pierre’s McMurphy is one of those infectiously enthusiastic people, even if it takes a while for the other patients, institutionalised as they are in an institution, to get on board. Dr Spivey (Matthew Steer) mostly leaves Ratched (or ‘Ratsh*t’ as McMurphy occasionally called her, to her face) to run the ward, preferring a non-confrontational approach. This is not a scene-by-scene re-enactment of the novel. Spoiler alert: for readers familiar with the book, the fishing expedition doesn’t appear at all in this stage adaptation, with all the action concentrated in the ward itself.
The psychiatric ward is not a pleasant place to be at the best of times. The patients appear to be overmedicated, at least in part to pacify them – the effect on McMurphy is limited, if existent at all, so eventually more drastic measures are required. The group therapy sessions serve zero therapeutic purposes – more often than not, hardly anybody wants to say anything besides Ratchet, because to speak out would essentially involve betraying another patient’s confidence: each of them, in their own way, is playing the system. Not that you can ever really ‘win’ once you’ve been ‘committed’.
Against such a bleak backdrop, it’s remarkable that there are as many laughs as there are. The audience is not laughing at anybody’s psychological condition but rather goes along with the banter that is generated against significant odds. The ‘in the round’ staging works well in this production, and it is (or at least it seems to be) a relatively small performance space, with the patients in a sort of ‘goldfish bowl’ where everything and everyone is on public display, always.
It has often been said that the dangers of blindly following instructions came to light at the Nuremberg Trials. McMurphy’s challenges to Ratched give pause for thought and have much wider implications and consequences, beyond the show’s revelations about abuses in psychiatric hospitals. A provocative and perceptive production.
Review by Chris Omaweng
Inside a psychiatric facility, Chief Bromden has been silent for years — confined and maligned by a system that labels, divides and forgets. But he has a story to tell. He’s just been waiting for someone to listen.
Enter Randle P. McMurphy, a gambler and provocateur whose defiance unsettles the ward — and sparks something long dormant in Bromden and his fellow patients. Under the iron rule of Nurse Ratched, they have been stripped of their humanity. Now, McMurphy’s rebellion reminds the patients of their voices — and what it means to be free.
Aaron Pierre – Randle P. McMurphy
Giles Terera – Dale Harding
Olivia Williams – Nurse Ratched
Samson Ajewole – Aide Warren
Kazeem Tosin Amore – Aide Turkle
Arthur Boan – Chief Bromden
Ene Forst – Ruckley
Jaz Hutchins – Aide Williams
Daisy Lewis – Candy Starr
Amy Newton – Nurse Flinn/Sandra
Jason Pennycooke – Martini
Javone Prince – Cheswick
Mo Sesay – Scanlon
Matthew Steer – Dr. Spivey
Kedar Williams-Stirling – Billy Bibbit
Adam Bond, Emma Cater, Shaquille Jack – Ensemble
A play by Dale Wasserman
Based on the novel by Ken Kasey
Clint Dyer – Director
Ben Stones – Set & Costume
Chris Davey – Lighting
Benjamin Grant – Sound
Video – Gino Ricardo Green
Lucie Pankhurst – Movement
Heather Basten CDG CSA – Casting
Joel Trill – Voice & Dialect
Bethan Clark – Intimacy
Kev McCurdy – Fights
Jade Hackett – Associate Director
ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST
The Old Vic
1 April to 23 May 2026
Book Tickets for One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest
