Review: Detroit

Detroit, at the National Theatre, is something quite unexpected. Appearing at first to simply be a play about new neighbours in an American suburb the layers of the onion gradually unfold transforming a witty, well performed play into something far stronger.

As the backyard barbecues go on Ben and Mary begin to realise that their new neighbours may not be quite what they first thought, but as time goes on we’re not really sure any of the characters are exactly who they think they are.

Lisa D’Amour’s clever script has a subtle way of building tension and keeping yo off balance, slightly disturbed. One scene in particular, which I wont go into, goes on expertly too long fatiguing the characters and laying the ground work for the splendidly shocking denouement.

These are characters full of self-deceit, and while one pair may be the socially recognised outsiders the others see their behavior reflected back at them in a simply different destructive form.

This is certainly a funny play with a strong cast that has plenty to make you think and plays with form without hurting your head. The one thing I particularly enjoyed was the way we were led into thinking this was a play where everything was going to be tied up with neat little bows, but in fact those bows ended up choking us.