Review: Harry Clarke at The Ambassador’s Theatre

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Having already wowed audiences and critics alike on the other side of the Atlantic, Harry Clarke by David Cale now makes its London premiere at the Ambassador’s Theatre, with its original star, Billy Crudup, who also performed in the Audible Original Studio Recording. 

This one-man play might remind audiences of Patricia Highsmith’s Tom Ripley, or even at a push, Jekyll and Hyde. For Harry Clarke we discover, is a devious persona of unassuming Philip Brugglestein, but that also brings with it a biting wit that the audience revels in, particularly the references to London. 

We don’t spend too much time in Philip’s childhood growing up in the mid-west, but it’s enough to paint the picture of the man Philip would be come. At eight years old, he decides he wants to live life as an English boy and adopts an appropriate accent to accompany this new identity. 

In an already unhappy childhood, Philip’s father reacts badly to his son’s anglicisation and threatens electroshock therapy.  All of this contributes to adult Philip’s obsession with money and success, a few uninspiring service jobs are not enough to quench this thirst, and so Harry Clarke is born. 

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With a convincing backstory in place, this more confident individual finds it easy to insert themselves into other people’s lives, and it’s the rich and successful Mark Schmidt and his family who become the target of Clarke’s desires. 

If you’ve seen Saltburn, you’ll have some idea how this goes (but without as many toe-curling moments). The difference is the character of Harry Clarke, unlike Oliver Quick or Tom Ripley, isn’t particularly charming or loveable, and has such a grating (and too often unconvincing) cockney accent, it seems unlikely he would be able to get within twenty feet of New York’s hoi polloi. The fact that he does, is what makes this a wonderful modern thriller. 

Its ingenuity lies in writer, David Cale’s ability to ensure we see not just the vulnerability of Bruggelestein, but also that of Mark Schmidt, and how both Schmidt and Clarke become the answer to each other’s problems.

Billy Crudup is a sensation, successfully playing all of the characters and managing to give each one a distinct personality, along with fascinating physical attributes. 

You know you’re watching a really good thriller, when despite hanging on every word, the eighty minute run time simply flies by. Director, Leigh Silverman utilises the stage well, creating different segments within what is a relatively sparse space. 

While Saltburn and the Talented Mr. Ripley might tell a similar kind of story, it feels brand new, and almost more shocking, in Harry Clarke.  Told entirely from one perspective it leaves us questioning just how much of Clarke’s story we can believe, but still enraptured in the tale Crudup masterfully weaves.