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One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest

 
Max Allen Review by Max Allen 4 Published: 30 Apr 2026 Old Vic Show Dates: 1 Apr 2026-23 May 2026

From its ensemble cast, led by the equal parts captivating, abrasive, and charming Aaron Pierre as the divisive Randle P. McMurphy, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest at the Old Vic is driven by magnetic performances.

I was still devastated, hoping somehow the story might change.

Director Clint Dyer reimagines the text through a more overtly political lens, introducing transitional sequences in which the mute Chief Bromden, played by Arthur Boan, gives speeches on Native oppression. The production also bookends the play with striking movement sequences set in Congo Square, the historic Black and Indigenous site in New Orleans. These choices mark a clear departure from the original text, relocating the hospital to the American South, making the residents of the institution Black, and linking the story to broader political commentary.

While there is certainly space to expand the scope of a work through adaptation, this already rich story, full of themes of camaraderie, misogyny, Indigenous identity, mental health, and power, did not need so much added material. The production is least effective in Bromden’s speeches on oppression, where the messaging feels too explicit. The text already contains its political force, and the powerful Congo Square sequences, combined with the casting choices, are enough to invite reflection. The additional material slows the plot, dilutes the original themes, and occasionally confuses the story.

However, much of this is forgiven because of the dominating, endearing performances and the strength of the staging. Dale Wasserman adapts the text effectively for the stage, Benjamin Grant’s sound design weaves in a wonderful score, and Chris Davey’s electrifying lighting punctuates each heart-dropping moment beautifully. Yet these elements mainly serve to open the door for the true heart of the production: the touching performances from the ensemble of misfits occupying the hospital’s plasticine, institutional walls.

Led by Pierre, each cast member complements the others beautifully. Their troubled, standoffish behaviour gives way to genuinely cathartic moments of reunion and rebellion. Their eagerness to connect, and the tenderness with which they do so, holds the show together and kept me engaged from start to finish. Despite knowing what was coming, I was still devastated when it arrived, hoping somehow that the story might change and these lovable “boys” could get through it together.

Olivia Williams is terrific as Nurse Ratched, countering the patients’ chaos and lunacy with a beautifully reserved, clinical evil. Pierre, meanwhile, is the locomotive powering the production, dragging it from one scene to the next with irresistible force. Without him, the interludes interrupting the action might have sunk the show. Instead, it pushes through, remaining something beautiful and brilliant.

While the political commentary sometimes misses the mark, the original themes and story are delivered righteously, and I enjoyed every heartbreaking performance on stage.

Amir Nisi

Max Allen

Max Allen is an award-winning writer and performer whose acclaimed work has been staged across the UK and Europe. His debut play, FRAT, played to sold-out audiences in London and at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. He has a keen interest in emerging theatre, which continues to inspire and inform his own creative practice.

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The Blurb:

‘It’s society’s way of dealing with someone different’ — One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey

Inside a psychiatric facility, Chief Bromden has been silent for years — confined and maligned by a system that labels, divides and forgets. But he has a story to tell. He’s just been waiting for someone to listen.

Enter Randle P. McMurphy, a gambler and provocateur whose defiance unsettles the ward — and sparks something long dormant in Bromden and his fellow patients. Under the iron rule of Nurse Ratched, they have been stripped of their humanity. Now, McMurphy’s rebellion reminds the patients of their voices — and what it means to be free.

Based on Ken Kesey’s countercultural masterpiece and adapted by Dale Wasserman, Clint Dyer directs a bold new staging of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest that reignites the spirit of the original novel, starring Aaron Pierre, Giles Terera and Olivia Williams. A searing exploration of colonialism and the social structures built to silence dissent, this production invites audiences to experience the story in a powerful new light.

Bird & Bird is the proud Production Sponsor of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

Production supported by the Huo Family Foundation and The Public Fund

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