Based on the award winning novel by Mark Haddon, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime hits the famous Broadway stage with overwhelming success as Alex Sharp takes on the challenging role of an autistic teenage boy.
Starring Alex Sharp as Christopher Boone, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime follows the adventures of a 15 year old autistic boy who makes it his duty to discover who murdered Wellington, a dog belonging to his neighbor, played by Helen Carey. Despite having the naïve mindset of an autistic teenage boy, and the warnings of his father, played by Ian Barford, Christopher Boone believes he has his path to detective duty all figured out; however, this path changes when he realizes someone that he loves very much, played by Enid Graham, has left his life willingly, and he sets out to London to find her. With the struggles of anxiety and needing constant direction and focus, Christopher’s success in finding London seems unlikely, but with the mindset he has given himself, he knows he can achieve anything with the right amount of courage.
The determined and convincing cast of the well-produced play helps the audience believe that they are viewing life from the mind of an autistic 15 year old boy. The stage, uniquely set up as a grid board throughout the entirety of the performance, shows how Christopher viewed the path that he took, each grid square lighting up as Christopher strategically planned his steps. The incredible flashing lights and background noise precisely displaying the way an autistic boy would feel if he suddenly became overwhelmed, whether it is by someone yelling or an uncomfortable amount of people in a small space. With the audience viewing life from the standpoint of an autistic mind, every decision that Christopher makes becomes justified through his thoughts; however, being an audience, it is easy to see how unaccepting and confused the people surrounding Christopher are by his seemingly strange behavior.
Despite the beautiful performance and unique stage set up, one aspect of the play that could have been confusing at times is the series of events in which the play takes place. At times, scenes jump so sporadically that it becomes difficult to differentiate when one scene ends and another scene begins. The storyline of the play, compared to Mark Haddon’s novel, is much less developed, which is expected when producers are given 160 minutes to act out an extensive novel. Despite these small bumps, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime lights up the Broadway stage with incredible success, and should be on anyone’s list of plays to watch next time they find themselves in the Big Apple.
