Royal Court Theatre, London – until 8 February 2025
Reviewed by Claire Roderick
4****
In the quiet and seemingly idyllic community of Stillwater, South Africa, the appearance of a mysterious shack shatters the aspirational atmosphere and lays bare the attitudes of the residents.
Despite living in Stillwater for 2 years, no neighbours have ever visited Sihle (Sifiso Mazibuko) and Bonolo Mbatha (Mimî M Khayisa) – the only Black residents – until the shack appears. Gatekeepers of the community, Lynette (Olivia Darnley) and Christopher (Scott Sparrow) come over for wine and nibbles, but they have an ulterior motive. To avoid appearing racist, the residents think it best if Sihle and Bonolo confront the people in the shack and threaten them with eviction. This subject doesn’t arise easily though. First, we watch a hilariously pretentious Bonolo showing off her fancy utensils brought back from the couple’s foreign travels – you will never be able to take anyone who uses a wine aerator seriously again. The verbal gymnastics Chris and Lynette go through to appear reasonable in their request will make you squirm and the differing reactions of the Mbathas cleverly grabs the audience’s attention .
Sihle’s apparent acceptance of what needs to be done is at odds with Bonolo’s outrage as she talks of fighting for the invisible people in the shack, but the couple’s differing upbringings – subtly highlighted by Bonolo’s cultural references – result in the shack having vastly different meanings for them both. For Sihle, it is a reminder of how hard he has worked to distance himself from his childhood in a township, while to Bonolo, who grew up in a wealthier family, has a more abstract idea of activism to repair inequalities.
The shack looms in the background on ULTZ’s set, easily and smoothly switching between the “good” house in Stillwater. Chris Davey’s lighting and Elena Peña’s sound design create an easy atmosphere and Nancy Medina’s intelligent direction of Amy Jephta’s writing portrays a couple who know each other and their faults inside out and who aren’t afraid to air their differences. The scenes where the white couples freeze and Sihle and Bonolo have intense discussions about the racism they are facing are staged brilliantly – whether the couple are howling with laughter at being “the right kind of Black” or fighting angrily.
The inclusion of another couple, Andrew (Kai Luke Brummer) and Jess (Robyn Rainsford) heightens the tension. White, but struggling financially, they are living above their means in this aspirational neighbourhood and only got their house because Lynette liked them. The assumptions both white men make when they first met Sihle (and Sihle laughing it off) say it all, but Andrew’s misunderstanding is prolonged and painful to watch, and his bitterness at the Mbatha’s lifestyle compared to his own bubbles away in the following scenes. The South African setting takes the NIMBYism UK audiences will recognise to extreme and dangerous heights.
The cast are outstanding, with Sparrow, Darnley, Rainsford and Brummer playing their less fleshed out characters with an ever-thinning glossy veneer over their tactlessness and selfishness. Mazibuko and Khayisa are both wonderful as the beleaguered couple – exposing the discomfort of adapting and the pain of ignoring microaggressions to be accepted in emotionally charged performances.
Exquisitely written and performed, A Good House is an unmissable comedy of manners and prejudices. Sharp and witty, uncomfortable, and confronting – asking what would you be willing to do to protect everything you’ve worked for.