A ROLE TO DIE FOR
Marylebone Theatre
★★★★
“A wonderful mix – but guilty of being shaken and stirred, which upsets the balance slightly”
Sean Connery is centre stage, flanked by Pierce Brosnan and Roger Moore. Downstage right, Daniel Craig gazes moodily out into the audience while, stage left, Timothy Dalton does the same but with a more sardonic twinkle in his eye. All of them are brandishing a semi-automatic Beretta. Alas, they are just portraits on the walls of the office of Deborah, the fictitious head of the James Bond franchise. But there lies the catch – they are the only real-life characters in an otherwise fabricated comedy-drama, and are constantly referred to. The juxtaposition doesn’t always work, but what it does do is lure the story dangerously close to the truth. Writer Jordan Waller claims that he has chosen not to base his play, “A Role to Die For”, on real life people in order to be ‘unencumbered by facts’. Whilst he might have succeeded (from the libel lawyers’ perspective at least), there is no disguising the protagonists.
Who will be the next James Bond? Back in real life, speculation is rife. In the play, Deborah (Tanya Franks) is just about to announce Daniel Craig’s successor to the baying public, aided and abetted by her cousin side-kick Malcolm (Philip Bretherton). Deborah’s son, Quinn (Harry Goodson-Bevan) is one step ahead and sufficiently entrenched in the new way of thinking to foresee the impending scandal/disaster/farce* (*delete as appropriate). It is a family affair, and Waller brilliantly explores the dynamics of this high-powered dynasty. Deborah (even the name rhymes and scans with her factual counterpart) shares the Bond legacy with Malcolm, inherited from her father – a legacy she seems determined to pass down to her gay, vegan son who brandishes an ‘eat-the-rich’ slogan on his t-shirt.
On the eve of the big announcement, the star lined up to be the new Bond pulls out (cue some double-entendres). It has emerged that he has been a naughty boy. A predator (‘isn’t that a dinosaur?’ asks Malcolm) of girls, many of them on the younger side (where have we heard that recently?). The question of who the emergency replacement will be kicks up the other, more pertinent, question of how Bond can adapt to modern day values. The play throws the issues around in a wonderfully structured way, drawing laughs from the audience on practically every other line. Yes, the debate might be tried and tested, but the stream of witty one-liners and acute character observation have us grinning from ear to ear throughout.
Franks is simply terrific as Barbara (sorry… Deborah – easy mistake). Full of spunk (don’t blame me – I’m just getting into the spirit of the play), she portrays a woman with a man’s ability to spout profanities, but a woman’s ability to use them to greater effect. Ruthless but vulnerable, Franks rises above her quips and soundbites to give Deborah a quite human quality, especially during the more introspective second act. Goodson-Bevan, as the ‘distinctly mediocre nepo-baby’ is far from mediocre in his depiction of a guy torn between social awareness and family loyalty. Bretherton’s Malcolm is hilariously old school. Less calculating, more pragmatic but equally ruthless despite being accused of being a ‘dithering old timer’. Enter Theo, one of two candidates for the role of Bond, who trashes every stereotype you can think of. Obioma Ugoala shines as the well-spoken, well heeled, Cambridge educated actor on whose shoulders the success of the movie franchise rests. Or does it?
Things don’t necessarily go to plan. Set mainly in the head office, with a brief visit to the casting room courtesy of Cory Shipp’s shifting backdrops, the action moves forward at a pace that borders on farce yet is more grounded in pure comedy. Director Derek Bond (no relation) rightly allows little time for the actors to milk the jokes, which enriches the text’s naturalism and flow. Politics, finance, sexuality, race, diversity, media scrutiny, back-stabbing, trolling, integrity, are all scrutinised but the sheer ambition of the content means that the surface is scratched without getting too deep. Nevertheless, it is scathing of the bygone era of film making, but strangely nostalgic too. It is equally mocking of the new climate, but simultaneously respectful. A feat of juggling that writer and performers seem to pull off without dropping the ball. Even when tripping over the occasional cliché.
“A Role to Die For” is sharp, cutting and satirical. Sometimes shocking, nearly always extremely funny. A wonderful mix – but guilty of being shaken and stirred, which upsets the balance slightly. We occasionally wince, but it does go down exceedingly well, and comes with a real kick. Cue the ‘dum di-di dum dum’ guitar riff.
A ROLE TO DIE FOR
Marylebone Theatre
Reviewed on 31st July 2025
by Jonathan Evans
Photography by Steve Gregson
Previously reviewed at this venue:
ALICE IN WONDERLAND | ★★★ | July 2025
FAYGELE | ★★★★★ | May 2025
WHITE ROSE | ★★ | March 2025
WHAT WE TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT ANNE FRANK | ★★★★ | October 2024
THE GOVERNMENT INSPECTOR | ★★★★ | May 2024
THE DREAM OF A RIDICULOUS MAN | ★★★★ | March 2024
A SHERLOCK CAROL | ★★★★ | November 2023
THE DRY HOUSE | ★★½ | April 2023
