Tag: Sophia Chetin-Leuner

Porn Play by Sophia Chetin-Leuner, Royal Court Theatre Upstairs, 8 November 2025

This excellent production, which Janie and I saw on the second preview evening, made us feel uncomfortable in many ways. The central subject matter – addiction to violent on-line pornography – is a deliberately discomforting topic. Playwright Sophia Chetin-Leuner takes this topic on in an unflinching yet surprisingly nuanced manner in this play.

It is really a play about addiction taking hold of a bright individual and destroying their life. It just so happens that violent porn is the addiction in this case.

The acting was universally excellent. Ambika Mod, as the victim of the addiction, is, understandably, getting most of the plaudits. She is on stage almost throughout the play and what a challenging role it must be. Will Close, Lizzy Connolly and Asif Khan provide excellent support, playing multiple parts each and doing so convincingly.

Josie Rourke is a superb director. This is the first time we have seen her work since she returned from her career break. She’s certainly still got what it takes.

Royal Court Theatre information about the production can be found here.

Formal reviews of the production can be found here. They have been almost universally positive, resulting in the Royal Court Theatre Upstairs run selling out.

I said the production made us feel uncomfortable in many ways. Apart from our discomfort with the subject matter…not least the topicality of questions around abusive and violent sex…we were also visually and physically discomforted by the set/seating.

The carpeted set looked like seedy living space from the 1970s or 1980s – deliberately I’m sure. The audience is asked to put shoe covers on when entering, as if to symbolise a need for personal protection…but also perhaps for practical reasons to protect the set.

But most discomforting of all was the seating on those “carpeted steps” doubling as seats. No back support and 100 minutes of tense drama. We walked out of the theatre like John Wayne having just dismounted from his horse…or…[insert your own unsubtle and unsuitable metaphor here]. Still, it was worth it.

Excellent play, excellent production.

This Might Not Be It by Sophia Chetin-Leuner, Bush Studio,  3 February 2024

Photo of The Bush Theatre by Spudgun67, CC BY-SA 4.0

Our first visit to the theatre of 2024 and it was worth the wait.

Set in an NHS mental health service unit for juveniles, the play tells the simple story of a youngster who enters the workplace imagining that he might make a difference in a hurry.

Then reality bites.

The play is beautifully written by Sophia Chetin-Leuner, and very well directed by Ed Madden, who should, if nothing else, pick up a nominative determinism award for directing this particular piece.

Despite the plethora of short scenes, the story and characterisation develop organically and clearly over the 90 minutes or so of the piece. I had to suspend a fair bit of belief around the central conceit that a youngster might implement an NHS patient administration system alone in just a few weeks without encountering or causing any profound issues, but that only proves that I have spent too much of my working life thinking about informatics.

The cast all performed their parts convincingly, with top marks to Debra Baker who played the “seen it all before administrator” Angela.

Denzel Baidoo was the most comedic of the three, playing the naïve trainee Jay. One short scene, set to music, when Jay thinks he is alone in the office will live long in our memories.

You should be able to find formal reviews here, through this search. Mostly very good.

If you are reading this piece soon after I have upped it, you have a chance still to see this production at The Bush, as it has been extended to 7 March. In Janie’s and my opinion, it deserves a transfer to gain a wider audience. It is a fun piece that made us both laugh a lot, but it also tackles a great many pertinent issues of our times in a thoughtful and warm-hearted way.