Writer: Stefano Massini, adapted by Ben Power
Director: Sam Mendes
There are few iconic tales about the titans of modern capitalism: The Power Broker, Empire of Pain, and it is fair to say that The Lehman Trilogy (with its three-hour runtime covering two centuries) belongs in that list. The Lehman Trilogy follows the entire family tree of the Lehman family, from Henry’s arrival in America to the eventual collapse in 2008 of the investment bank, Lehman Brothers. Critical to these tales is the palpable sense of doom felt by virtue of knowing the outcome. However, perhaps The Lehman Trilogy’s greatest flaw is having no real feeling of comeuppance at its finale.
While The Lehman Trilogy is under no duty to construct its grand history as a morality tale, there are clear moral messages that the play sprinkles throughout. It then feels peculiar that The Lehman Trilogy appears to mourn the moment when Lehman Brothers is handed over to traders, as if things were going swimmingly under the Lehmans, but when the traders take control, it all goes wrong. What makes other epic tales about capitalist titans enjoyable is the eventual realisation that they were never the smartest guys in the room, but that for a while, they got lucky until eventually their luck ran out. Perhaps the ironic repeated claim that Henry Lehman is “always right” loses its teeth if he experiences nothing but success throughout the play.
Stefano Massini and Ben Power’s text does an admirable job of engaging meaningfully with the evils that Lehman Brothers was founded on. The story is not about slavery in America, and therefore, it does not detour too long from Lehman Brothers to assess this history, but it does leave the audience with a solid sense of the moral rot at the core of its subject matter.
As with its prior run at the National Theatre, Sam Mendes’ direction is crisp, funny, pleasantly off-kilter, and West End director Rory McGregor and resident director Jennifer Lane Baker keep the performances lively. Moments of levity are much needed and come largely courtesy of John Heffernan and Aaron Krohn’s delightful turns as minor characters. Unfortunately, some of these comedic moments are founded on cheap and reductive representations of women. Nevertheless, this is the play accurately reflecting the ugly face of 19th and 20th Century attitudes. Perhaps because he is spared most of those roles, Howard W. Overshown commands the stage from start to finish, whether embodying the fearsome Emanuel Lehman or three-year-old Herbert.
Es Devlin’s set and Luke Halls’ video interplay delightfully, especially in their rotational dances, giving energy and movement to an otherwise geometrically modernist stage. Cat Beveridge’s deft work on piano moves subtly from focal point to background colour and back again. Score, set, and video all take their turn to inhabit the centre of attention without loudly announcing their approach.
The script might be at risk of feeling left behind in an ever-changing world, and while its choice of subject matter could place it at risk of portraying harmful stereotypes, there is only one moment where it engages with Jewish culture in an untactful way. At three hours, there are lots of opportunities for the script to misstep, which it largely manages to avoid. However, it does leave the audience sparsely informed about how and why Lehman Brothers collapsed. It is not quite comprehensive enough for a school trip, but for those with some prior knowledge, The Lehman Trilogy provides an epic story bringing meaning to a name that meant very little to those hearing it for the first time in 2008.
Runs until 5 January 2025
The Reviews Hub Score
Epic economic edda
