The Grove Theatre, Eastbourne – until August 23rd 2026
Reviewed by Mike Linane
4****
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest is the story of a wisecracking outsider sent to a mental institution, whose rebellious spirit disrupts the oppressive regime of Nurse Ratched and inspires fellow patients to challenge their routines. It is a masterful mix of drama, dark comedy, and social commentary, and features a powerhouse performance by Leigh Hollidge as Randle P. McMurphy, a man who has been arrested for the rape of a minor (though he insists she told him she was older than she actually was) and who feigns mental illness to prevent himself from being sent to prison. From the moment Hollidge arrives he takes total control of the stage and all around him. He is ably supported by Claire Bolt as Nurse Ratched who is determined that McMurphy will not get the better of her or the system that she has built up around her to ensure that the inmates are totally under her strict control.
The play is excellently directed by Maurice Thorogood who makes use of every inch of the theatre space available to him having completed redesigned the auditorium for this production. This works very well allowing the actors to come and go from all different areas including amongst where the audience is sitting.
The tension of the play builds nicely until, in the second half of the second act, all hell breaks loose in the institution leading to an emotional and harrowing finale. The lady in the seat next to me was in tears as she left the theatre and I can totally understand why – the drama builds to such a crescendo of horror that it is impossible to be unmoved by what you have seen performed before you.
This may sound like a grim play to go to see and for the most part it is, although there is also plenty of humour in it, but it is a play that you simply cannot afford to miss. The acting of Hollidge is so good it is worthy of any West End theatre stage. If you live in or near Eastbourne you must make the effort to go to see this – I guarantee you will not be disappointed by it.