Born With Teeth – Wyndham’s Theatre – Saturday 25th October 2025

(Rated 5/5)

‘Born with Teeth’ by Liz Duffy Adams, is a play inspired by the recent discovery concluded by the editors of the New Oxford Shakespeare, using scientific studies of writing techniques, that Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare collaborated on the three Henry VI plays with a likely probability of over 90%! Now that’s pretty high! Though the vast majority – if not all – of Shakespeare’s plays are now published in his name – historians believe that he wrote with several different writers on a fair few of them. As many will know theories also abound that Shakespeare didn’t write any of them at all! It’s certainly exciting to think about how he may have been at the very least influenced by a writing project with the – at the time of 1591 – high flying, exciting, Cambridge-educated, genius poet and Elizabethan-court spy Kit Marlowe, which Adams imagines in this play. Through her grammar-school, country boy, actor narrator – Will Shakespeare - she informs us at points “This didn’t happen”, or variations thereupon. As Kit and Will discuss, they are not reproducing “factual history” – if such a thing even exists – in their play, and neither is Adams. But, how wonderful to explore what may have occurred between these two; dynamic and gentle; opposing yet maybe attracting personalities, with their vastly different life experiences, views, morals and attitudes to life. The two-hander is full of snappy witty dialogue revealing of so much about both of these two impressive playwrights as they discover each other in front of us, explore their stark contrasts, attempt to draw things from the other they may not want to give, and play-fight, real-fight, attract and repel, creatively banter, come up with their lines, perform them together, and debate the dangers of the world they are in and what that could mean for them both in their journeys through life and even personal development. Just prior to ‘curtain up, my theatre companion and I were talking about the importance of chemistry between lead actors – whatever the nature of the relationships they are protraying – and how a play or show can fall flat if it isn’t present. No danger of that here. Will (Edward Bluemel) – and the rest of us – are dazzled by Ncuti Gatwa’s Kit’s edgy charisma and charm, and though he tries to resist, sparks fly between them. And Kit – though initially wanting to seduce Will into his world of espionage, gradually wants to seduce him in quite a different way, even later considering whether that gentle way of life towards which he was so scathing initially, might actually be quite attractive. The whole interaction – though in three acts – is over ever so much faster than the vast majority of Will’s plays – the fiery heart-pounding-inducing brilliance burns towards, well a twist at the end in the “This didn’t happen” mantra… but “No Spoilers” (Thanks River Song 😉)!

As Ncuti’s 15th Doctor knows there is “Always a twist at the end”. I saw Ncuti’s performances arguably in the wrong order 😉 In fact when I saw him announced as The Doctor, I didn’t even know who he was. I saw all his Who before his Eric Effiong in ‘Sex Education’, and that after his turn as Algernon Moncrieff in ‘The Importance of Being Ernest’. For me, he shines so bright and full of colour in all he does, and gives so much of himself to all his characters, using the trademark Ncuti laugh in such a variety of ways. Here he conveys the fierce danger of Marlowe in addition to the out and proud and exciting boundary-breaking beauty of him. Shakespeare was easily the duller of the two, and the implication being he could almost have gone under the radar if it hadn’t been for the inspiring influence of Kit. I didn’t think I knew Edward Bluemel, but then realised he played Maeve’s brother in ’Sex Education’ and Hugo in ‘Killing Eve’ – apologies you went under the radar for me there too, Ed – arguably great casting 😉

The production starts loudly as we are plunged into the peril of complete darkness following a crackling electric light show of images of Kit and Will. Then ‘Bang!’ on come a huge array of very bright and very hot lights almost blinding and burning us. On an amusing note, those of us who had gone in expecting to need layers against over-enthusiastic aircon, actually had to remove some! I was actually going to dock a mark for that, but I think it would have been unfair. I can now see the symbolism of it. So, lighting designer Neil Austen you are forgiven. Joanna Scotcher’s costumes were fabulously evocative of both their time and our time connecting the two – it is a story for all time in many ways. Daniel Evans directed – the programme notes that for films the director is often the key person – here it really does feel as though the writers – all three of them are and were! I love writing! I would love to have written this, but that honour goes to Liz Duffy Adams, and I’m sure Christopher Marlowe and William Shakespeare would have given her rave reviews! 😊

BornWithTeeth – Review by TheRestrictedReviewer © 2025