Review: The Tony Award-winning Eureka Day, now showing at Nottingham Playhouse until November 15

I won’t lie, when I saw that this play was advertised as being ‘laugh-out-loud’ funny I was skeptical — but how wrong I was for doubting it.

Making its regional premiers at the Nottingham Playhouse, Eureka Day is a very apt comedy for the modern day, which challenges our beliefs and prejudices in not just a humorous, but also heartfelt, way.

This Tony-award winning play, by writer Jonathan Spector, is set in a private school in San Francisco’s Bay Area, where everyone seems to play a game of one-upmanship to prove how tolerant and accepting they are.

We are introduced to members of the school’s executive committee, some of whom have been there for many years, and other who have only recently joined.

With scenes split up into committee meetings throughout the school year, we follow them as they attempt to navigate the challenge of a mumps outbreak among students.

Everything the committee does must be agreed upon by consensus, and we watch on as their relationships and friendships begin to strain as intense disagreements erupt surrounding the school’s vaccine policy.

With covid fresh in our collective memories and the misinformation surrounding vaccines hitting new heights during the pandemic, this show really hits home.

It is an incredibly emotive issue, and I am sure we all know someone who was hesitant or just flat out refused to be vaccinated, despite the risk.

And here lies the central conflict of Eureka Day. These once “tolerant and accepting” people crumble as soon as their own beliefs are challenged.

It is also a critique on “wokeism” for lack of a better word, as it shows how bias can creep in regardless of righteous our political beliefs are.

This conflict bubbles over as newcomer Carina, played by Adele James, who is actively calling for all children to be vaccinated, butts heads with committee stalwart Suzanne, played by Jenna Russell, who is staunchly anti-vaccine.

Every actor did such a fantastic job that I simply forgot I was watching a play. It was almost like peering into the lives of real people.

Despite dealing with a very hard hitting issue, it is done so in a very approachable, human, and funny way.

On many occasions I would catch myself smiling away and laughing with the rest of the audience.

One of the best scenes in the show comes as the committee host a virtual “community activated conversation”, where parents are invited to attend a live stream in which everyone can discuss changes to the school’s vaccine policy.

What follows is an almost scarily accurate depiction of online discourse as parents seemingly stop paying attention to anything being said by the committee and instead begin arguing among themselves in the comment section.

Delivering punchline after punchline of absurd 21st century realism, this was a unique narrative device to bring to the stage and it worked superbly.

Despite the lack of interval, and running at one hour and 45 minutes, this show actually feels fairly brisk.

Scenes are well paced, jokes hit hard, and emotions are given time to breathe.

I was wrong to doubt this show and I would urge anyone looking for an evening of laughs, don’t miss out of this triumphant modern comedy which proves theatre can be anything but stuffy.

Who ever knew a show about vaccines could be so funny? — FB

Eureka Day is showing at the Nottingham Playhouse until November 15. A Q&A with the cast will be held on November 5.