This show makes a splash. Carrie Cracknell, who, with fellow twentysomething Natalie Abrahami, has just taken over at the Gate, directs Swiss writer Lukas Barfuss's taboo-breaking drama in a fine production that would be even better for trying a little less.
The subject grabs the attention. Mentally subnormal teen Dora comes off her medication and quickly becomes a slave to sex, her cravings leaving her very open to abuse. It's yukky, and Barfuss relies on that yuk, as the plot grows meaner and more cynical by the minute.
A superb central performance by Cath Whitefield reveals an unappealing soul beneath or springing from Dora's damaged mind. Francis Lee's sneering lover has a locked-up insecurity that you could confuse for a good man peeking through. But it's director Cracknell who's everywhere, though not always effectually.
The installation art set gives an extended opening that has little to do with the play. It's wonderful, intriguing, surprising for a while, then isn't. Flickers of physical theatre often add to the mix but can seem little more than distracting flourishes.
The Gate has been a launch pad for high-flying directors: Stephen Daldry being the most outstanding, Thea Sharrock the most recent. Here, Cracknell suggests she is a more expressive sort than Sharrock, whose youth rarely shows in her work. She is also more reckless. How exciting.
Until 29 September (020 7229 0706).
The Sexual Neurosis Of Our Parents
Gate, W11
