Cleansed – The Almeida

I have heard Cleansed be described as unreviewable. Is this owing to its explicit, horrific imagery? Or its polarisation of audiences into the enthused and the disgusted?

Tinkler, a doctor-drug-dealer, acts as puppeteer to lovers Rod and Carl; to siblings-turned lovers Graham and Grace; and to the juvenile Robin. Set in a university – although deeply unclear until spelled out by Dan Rebellato’s poignant programme notes – the trios and pairs of people are stretched to their limit. The initial scenes take on surreal stakes. The smallest of choices bear the greatest of consequences. The question of why these choices are made seem to be the play’s very pulse.

The choreography was captivating, unsurprising given it is a recognisable Frecknall feature. Muscular contractions are reminiscent of rigorous mortis, with actors reaching bony angles of near-deathly pain. Across the board the acting was impeccable. In particular, Stuart Thompson gave a stellar performance as Robin, sustaining a placid demeanour in such horrific surrounds.

George Dennis’ sound design was a fervid force. His melting of carefree tunes (familiar-yet-nameless classical music) with the noises of terror (screams and guttural wrenches) was a sensorial standout. As Robin is forced by Tinkler to eat an entire box of chocolates, a gift failing to reach its recipient, a tinny noise scratches at the walls of the auditorium. When it grows into a thunderous heartbeat, you start to wonder when the noise will cease its hounding in your ears and Tinkler’s cruelty will come to a close.

With as many trigger warnings as there were scenes, the play is blanched by its brutality. Pain is layered on pain is layered on pain. The physical horror – with sparse floral interruptions – lends itself only to extrapolation. One irreversible change trumps the next. Arguably, the play’s main value lies in its discussion, its power in its splintering of opinion. At the show’s end was an academic’s treat: visions ripe for reflection.

That being said, it did not carry the sucker punch that perhaps Sarah Kane had intended. We are nearly thirty years on from its original production; ostensibly it did more to provoke questions around our societal desensitisation to shock value and body horror is portrayed than it did about the themes itself. In the shadow of A Little Life and other modern-day performances of violence, audiences are not so easily revolted into reflection. It begs the question of its programming. Why reanimate Cleansed now? A play which polarised its contemporary audience, but could be viewed as today’s faulty shock factory?

Reviewer: Eleanor Hall

Reviewed: 30th July 2026

North West End UK Rating: