The "Kitchen Sink Drama" has been reimagined by Dipo Baruwa-Etti in this brand-new offering from The Almeida. While it offers an incredibly nuanced perspective on activism, clever ideas and well thought out points, they are saturated in symbolism, metaphor and hints of the supernatural that never fully pay off, leaving audiences with a terrific story but altogether unfulfilled.

The titular "Clinic" refers to our central family who are celebrating the 60th birthday of their patriarch Segun (Maynard Eziashi), who arrived in England at seven years old with nothing, and now is a best-selling author and psychotherapist. His wife is a volunteer at the Women's Shelter, and his children are a Policeman and Junior Doctor respectively. When the chance to help a woman desperately in need arises, they jump at it. After all, with a family full of public sector workers, what problem can't be solved?

The arrival of Wunmi (played lyrically by Toyin Ayedun-Alase) causes much disruption to the already fragile family system. Political beliefs are dissected and evaluated between the bunch to great dramatic effect, and are sometimes even quite comedic. There are many audible reactions from the audience as certain lines are delivered. Baruwa-Etti crafts an all too perfect storm for each character to be interrogated by this figure who is seemingly replacing them in their own family. It makes for a fascinating watch, especially in Act 1.

In Act 2, things begin to go even further out of hand, and there are many hints that something supernatural may be at play too, with mysterious addictive tea and the occasional flash of electricity in Matt Haskins' otherwise static design, although this is never fully explained. This is very much a play that doesn't end at its curtain call. It has been written to provoke, to spark conversation in its audience when the house lights rise and it definitely succeeds in that.

The performances from all six actors are grounded in naturalistic style and are fully believable in their motivation to protect what they have worked so hard to achieve. However, when it comes to solely the material performed on stage, it loses itself in metaphor for the emotional explosion at the end of Act 2 to achieve its full impact.

*** Three stars

Reviewed by: Callum Wallace

The Clinic plays at the Almeida Theatre until 1 October, with tickets available here.