Theatre review: Inter Alia

Playwright Suzie Miller and director Justin Martin's next collaboration after Prima Facie has a lot to live up to after the earlier play's international success; but in fairness the publicity for Inter Alia has leaned heavily on that connection, and this is another story told by a powerful woman in the legal system, with a Latin legal term as its title, so it's not like the comparisons aren't being enthusiastically invited. This time the narrator is a judge: Jessica (Rosamund Pike) has been in the position for a couple of years now and is settled into a role that, as she often tells us, requires a lot less talking and a lot more listening than her previous job as a barrister. She enjoys the wider perspective she now has as well as the fresh approach she feels she brings to the bench, even if she has to contend with barristers who show her less respect than her male colleagues.

Stage-to-screen review: Prima Facie

When I caught Covid last spring and had to miss a number of shows I'd booked, some felt more of a wrench than others; Suzie Miller's Prima Facie, named after a legal procedure to determine whether a case has enough standing to go to court, was very well-received but also counted as one of 2022's big theatrical events, thanks to Jodie Comer making her West End debut in the monologue. I did at least figure it would eventually turn up on NTatHome since I knew it had been screened to cinemas, but thought it might take a couple of years since a Broadway run is coming up. In fact it's streaming for a limited time a bit earlier than expected, albeit not in all territories so it won't impact on live ticket sales. Comer plays Tessa, a young barrister whom we first meet on cocky form, bragging about the way she tricks witnesses into incriminating themselves on the stand.