Old Vic’s A Number is a smart nature vs nurture thought experiment – review
Lyndsey Turner’s revival of Caryl Churchill’s 2002 cloning drama, A Number, has opened at the Old Vic. Lasting barely an hour, A Number is an impressive piece of theatre.
Starring two internationally renowned actors – The Walking Dead’s Lennie James as the father, Salter, and I May Destroy You’s Paapa Essiedu as three of his sons – it considers the idea of cloning and how that might impact our sense of identity.
During the show we are introduced to the original son, the ‘clone’ who Salter had created after becoming estranged from the original, and one of the unauthorised copies – one of “a number” of clones made in the lab, referring to the show’s title.
It’s a smart nature vs nurture thought experiment; we explore the dynamic between Salter and his different sons, as we watch outcomes of ethical dilemmas unfold in realtime in this near-future drama.
