Review by Daz Gale
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Barely one month into 2025 and Almeida Theatre are already on their second West End transfer of the year. As A Streetcar Named Desire enjoys a strict three week return ahead of a New York transfer, one of the Islington theatre’s most acclaimed and talked about productions of 2024 gets its well-deserved West End transfer as The Years opens at the Harold Pinter Theatre. Having already reviewed the show at the Almeida and awarded the show an easy five stars, I was keen to see how it would fare not only on repeat viewing but transferring to a bigger space. Would it blow me away just as much second time around?
Premiering in the Netherlands in 2022, The Years is based on Annie Ernaux’s autobiographical novel Les Années with the English translation by Stephanie Bain debuting last year. Using memory as a theme, it charts the period of one woman’s life over many decades as she faces the challenges and changes in herself, moving into each pillar of her lifespan from childhood to adulthood to her older years. As well as changes within herself, the woman has to deal with an ever-changing world, focusing on the growing rights women achieved that would have spared her some of the more traumatic moments from her youth.
The beauty of The Years is in its simplicity. The story of one solitary woman (albeit played by five women) should feel small in principle, but to her, it is her everything, and the grandeur of this is reflected in the staging. The woman is used as an example of a world that becomes unrecognisable from the start of the play in the 1940s to its climax in the 200s, with the woman being the one constant in this fast-moving world, even if she changes drastically within herself. Told with brutal honesty and intimacy, this is a no-holds-barred, raw experience unlike any other in the theatre.
Eline Arbo’s adaptation of Ernaux’s text and Bain’s translation is so carefully done, making sure to never lose the essence of the woman’s story and more importantly, the story of all women. The simplicity I mentioned is deceptive in itself as this story is as big as any story gets and speaks to the very fabric of life, verbalising the inner-thoughts of many of us who navigate the changes that come with age and all the concerns that go with it. The phrase life-affirming can be thrown around a lot in reviews but I dare say you will not find a show that completely embodies those words more than The Years done. Arbo and Ernaux have made a show about life in itself and the result is as powerful and poignant as it gets.
Arbo’s inspired direction feels even better in the new space of the Harold Pinter Theatre with the challenge of five actors all playing the same woman leading to plenty of creative choices that impress and delight throughout. The way each actor hands over to the next when their time is up is a beautiful act in itself, with all five a constant force on stage, filling in the roles of the people in her life that come and go… sometimes literally. The simple use of sheets as a metaphor for memory creates beautiful snapshots in time, from the direction of the initial photographs to the moments each sheet is immortalised to the ultimate transformation of the stage in an ingenious use of design from Juul Dekker. The climactic moments of The Years are as powerful as anything I’ve ever witnessed on stage, simultaneously filling me with joy and sorrow and a huge sense of nostalgia for the two hours of perfection I had just witnessed.
A stunning use of lighting from Varja Klosse is at its best in the opening minutes of The Years as darkness turns to light gradually, creating the most beautiful aesthetic, cinematic in its execution. Music proves an unexpected element to the production, representing the changing trends as the decades progress and featuring a surprising, energetic and comedic performance of an 80’s classic – I won’t spoil which for you, but have your legwarmers on standby. Sound design and music supervision by Thijs Van Vuure makes this element impactful throughout, with the talented cast demonstrating their musical strengths at sporadic moments.
The Years takes you on a journey through one woman’s life, and as such, the tone can change drastically throughout. Though there is no shortage of light-hearted and comedic moments that will frequently have you laughing out loud, the tone can change completely in a split second, as is true of life. Graphic depictions of certain aspects of the story can prove an intense and uncomfortable watch but one that is vital to the story and is told with sincerity, refusing to gloss over anything. This has proven to be too difficult for some to watch with audience members fainting at one scene in particular becoming a common occurrence. Indeed, on press night, the show was stopped momentarily shortly after that particular scene to deal with a medical issue in the audience. While The Years is an incredible watch and one I would recommend to every single reader of this website, I would also strongly encourage them to check the trigger warnings prior to their visit.
The cast of five are awe-inspiring throughout, both in their time front and centre as their stage of the woman’s journey plays out, and collectively as an ensemble piece. With no shortage of talent be it comedically or musically, the one consistent among all five is the strength in their acting. Harmony Rose-Bremner takes on the woman through her childhood with a beautiful innocence and captivating presence that transitions into her initial self-discovery and beginnings of puberty, with the role then taken over by Anjli Mohindra. Though their time leading the story is over quickly, the two then form an electric double act when the story calls for the woman’s children to appear.
Romola Garai has wowed audiences twice in the last year, not just with her performance in The Years but also her standout turn in Giant, which will also soon enjoy a West End transfer, with Garai transferring with it. One of the most exciting and exceptional talents on a London stage at the moment, Garai is truly mesmerising to watch as she navigates the years of the woman’s early adulthood. A testament to her phenomenal abilities is the pivotal scene that has proven too difficult for some to watch, with Garai’s anguish and emotion astonishing to witness. Very rarely does a scene provoke such deathly silence in a theatre but you could really hear a pin drop during this prolonged scene as an entire audience were enraptured by this artful telling demonstrating the very best of theatre. The strength of her abilities comes in the aftermath of this event where she remains silent and overcome, refusing to join in with the story as she comes to terms with this step in the story. All five women are incredible in their own right in this story, but there really is something extra special about Garai both in this show and as an actor in general.
Garai hands over the role to Gina McKee as the woman ventures on a new chapter of self-discovery. A captivating force in herself, McKee is a wonder to watch, bringing a new quality to the character to match the new qualities she has found in herself, all played out with such authenticity and charm. Last but not least is Deborah Findley who closes the show with the woman in her older years. More than worth the wait, she shows a great versatility in her performance, from a tantrum as a small child to the slightly bewildered older lady struggling to keep up with a world she no longer understands and wondering what exactly her place in it is. There is a real poignancy in this final chapter of the story, furthered by the final moments. Where you see the five women standing together on stage regularly throughout the play, the sight of all five standing side-by-side after you have witnessed each play their part in the woman’s life really is something beautiful to behold, perfectly demonstrating the fragility and fleeting nature of life.
I loved The Years when I saw it last year, but for some reason I had shamefully overlooked it when it came to listing my favourite plays of 2024. Memory is a funny thing, as The Years demonstrates and this play is even better than I initially remembered. Maybe it has just got better with age as the cast become more comfortable and assured in their roles? Maybe the transfer to the West End has further elevated an already exceptional show? Or maybe there is an added element you get second time around when you realise how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together. Whatever it may be, my experience with The Years this time around surpassed that of my Almeida visit last year. Few shows manage to say so much with such simple methods but The Years is inspired in its execution and effortlessly manages to articulate the very essence of life, penetrating your soul with its themes every living person can relate to. Theatre really doesn’t come any better than this and I’m now left in no doubt that this show will remain in my memory as long as I live.
The Years plays at Harold Pinter Theatre until 19th April. Tickets available here.
Photos by Helen Murray