Archduke ★★★ Royal Court Theatre | Jun 20 - Jul 25, 2026


In 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, was assassinated in an act that precipitated the First World War. Playwright Rajiv Joseph reimagines that historical event as a commentary on the manipulation of ordinary people in service of the political ambitions of the wealthy and powerful. The play opens with two consumptive simpletons, Nedeljko and Gavrilo, who have been sent by their doctor to meet a mysterious stranger. Think Samuel Beckett's Vladimir and Estragon, except that when their Godot finally arrives, he proves to be just as much a pawn in a larger game as they are. The exchanges between the three are wonderfully absurd, full of wit and buoyed by the kind of physical comedy that Beckett himself would have appreciated. Jake Berne, Jason Sanchez and Adrien Rolet nicely capture the vulnerability and bewildered charm of the trio, adroitly combining deadpan humour, physical comedy, and genuine pathos. However, the play begins to lose momentum when the threesome encounter the Captain, who urges them to imagine a higher purpose for their lives, claiming a place in history by assassinating the Archduke during his visit to Serbia. The scene feels overextended and lacks the comic energy and lightness of the opening. The Captain's foil is his cook, Sladjana, who prays to a female god and embodies the practical wisdom of peasant life. She offers the young men an alternative future, one grounded in survival, love, and simple pleasures rather than political martyrdom. The allegory is rather heavy-handed. The naïve recruits are presented with a stark choice between allowing themselves to be exploited by the Captain's political and patriotic schemes or embracing the quieter life that Sladjana represents. It is sex and sandwiches versus celebrity and sacrifice, or a life lived in harmony with nature instead of becoming cannon fodder for someone else's ambitions. The anti-war message and its critique of class manipulation are delivered with little subtlety. Fortunately, the closing scene returns to the play's greatest strength as the three young men travel by train towards their rendezvous with destiny. Their absurd conversations regain the warmth, humour and humanity of the opening, and the play ends by suggesting that while history is often shaped by those who exploit others, ordinary people, swept along by forces they scarcely understand, still possess the power to choose.

Rated: ★★★

Reviewed by J.C.
Photo by Helen Murray

When, Where, Getting there:
Map & Location: 50-51 Sloane Square, London SW1W 8AS, UK

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