‘Prima Facie’: Jodie Comer is a revelation

‘PRIMA FACIE’: Jodie Comer. Photo: Bronwen Sharp.

PRIMA FACIE
Written by Suzie Miller
Directed by Justin Martin
Through July 2, 2023
John Golden Theatre
252 West 45th Street

(212-239-6200), www.PrimaFacieplay.com

By David NouNou

To fully appreciate the play Prima Facie, one must understand the definition. The legal term prima facie “refers to a case in which pre-trial evidence was reviewed by a judge and determined to be sufficient to warrant the trial.”

Tessa (Jodie Comer) is a criminal defense barrister in the U.K, or “lawyer” as we say in the U.S. From the beginning, she describes in detail the thrill she gets when prosecuting a case and how she meticulously outlines the extraction of truths from a defendant and entraps them. She goes back to her early days in law school where she was one of 200 students in this elite class and being informed by the professor “look to your left, look to your right, one of you will not make it till the end.” Now, we get a fuller picture of who Tessa is and the determination and the love she has for the law.

She takes a case prosecuting a female rape victim, and with the loopholes in the legal system, she victimizes the woman in the case. She gets involved with a fellow barrister—the date they go on, the excessive drinking, and then inviting him back to her apartment, and what ensues. In the aftermath, she goes to report it to the police. After the incident, she finds herself in a position where the tables have reversed on her where she is the victim that is being prosecuted. She now feels the agony and shame of victimization and how the law is structured.

Being a solo play, the show rests on Jodie Comer. The performance is a revelation. She peels off layer after layer, whether in her triumphant moments or in her deepest despair. She never goes after our sympathy. She is a headstrong woman and proud of her accomplishments as a barrister. She doesn’t ask for pity but to right the wrongs in the law. Only an accomplished actress of infinite dimension can accomplish this feat, and Jodie Comer is that actress.

The main problem I had with the play is the direction of Justin Martin. There are so many sound effects from the beginning—with beating hearts to loud music—all of which are more of a distraction and jarring than complementing the play or Ms. Comer’s performance. When dealing with a serious subject of rape, less “noise” would have made sensitive moments more compelling and less distracting.

We have seen so many of these cases in America; this could be in any part of the world. The play isn’t just about rape victims and the horrors they endure. It is also about the unjust criminal law system and the reforming the system needs; to have women be heard and not allowing men to go free due to the loopholes in the law.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published April 27, 2023
Reviewed at April 26, 2023 press performance.

‘PRIMA FACIE’: Jodie Comer. Photo: Bronwen Sharp.

‘PRIMA FACIE’: Jodie Comer. Photo: Bronwen Sharp.

‘PRIMA FACIE’: Jodie Comer. Photo: Bronwen Sharp.