THE HUMANS: ★★★★★ FROM THE SUNDAY TIMES

Theatre review: The Humans, Hampstead Theatre

By Christopher hart

'On a distant planet inhabited by a monstrous race of beings with teeth growing down their backs, they tell scary stories about these other aliens who are really scary — called Humans… Such is the idea behind the title of this superb play by Stephen Karam, still in his thirties, which was praised to the skies in New York, won four Tonys and comes to the Hampstead with the original American cast. It’s definitely a must-see.'

'To be honest, the idea of humans as monsters is one of the few here that doesn’t quite gel, because Karam’s depiction of a loving, squabbling, traumatised family, the Blakes, is too empathetic and generous to make them monsters. It is little short of astonishing, though, that in just 95 minutes, his play gives us a blackly comic family drama, a spooky supernatural foray into the characters’ subconscious and an unforgettable “state of the nation” portrait of America today, while never once feeling overburdened with ideas and themes.'