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Consent
Why is Justice blind? Is she impartial? Or is she blinkered?
Friends Ed and Tim take opposing briefs in a rape case. The key witness is a woman whose life seems a world away from theirs. At home, their own lives begin to unravel as every version of the truth is challenged.
Consent, Nina Raine's powerful, painful, funny play, sifts the evidence from every side and puts Justice herself in the dock. It premiered as a co-production between the National Theatre and Out of Joint, directed by Roger Michell at the National Theatre in 2017.
Friends Ed and Tim take opposing briefs in a rape case. The key witness is a woman whose life seems a world away from theirs. At home, their own lives begin to unravel as every version of the truth is challenged.
Consent, Nina Raine's powerful, painful, funny play, sifts the evidence from every side and puts Justice herself in the dock. It premiered as a co-production between the National Theatre and Out of Joint, directed by Roger Michell at the National Theatre in 2017.
130 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 30, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
March 22, 2023
This is really, really strong. What it does so intelligently is take apart how rape cases work, what the law's interest is, who the law protects, etc. It's funny and savage, but it's also very powerful. And – unlike so many, many plays about sexual violence – Consent asks you to identify with the victim of sexual violence repeatedly. This is a play that is actually smart about sexual violence, and smart plays about sexual violence are not, in fact, common in theatre. Formally, Consent is something of a mostly realist problem play, a genre that isn't usually my taste, but this one has just enough theatricality to make the whole thing work. I was really into this.
July 27, 2017
4.5 I have enjoyed reading Raine's earlier plays, but this is a gigantic step forward... parts of it are sheer brilliance, and Raine's dialogue often crackles. My qualms keeping it from a full 5 stars come in that, at times, the characters are almost TOO erudite - even barristers don't speak so eloquently ALL the time. Also, although everything eventually fits together, the main thrust of the play (marital rape) doesn't come into focus until very late in the second act - there is nothing superfluous beforehand, it just seems like the structure is a bit off.
January 22, 2023
A comedy on forms of communication - legalistic and empathetic - and their relation to outcomes/genres - tragedy and comedy.
October 19, 2023
READING VLOG
Switchblading between law and empathy, who is in the right? In the middle of a group of friends? In the middle of a traumatizing scandal?
Raine has this way of itching her characters into anger, making them implode, explode, and let out a fury that budges us to the edge of our seats. These people are screaming at each other, claiming righteousness, and who wins? Law? Empathy?
All of this is explored in this swift read. I could imagine a viewing of the play would make my heart race.
Switchblading between law and empathy, who is in the right? In the middle of a group of friends? In the middle of a traumatizing scandal?
Raine has this way of itching her characters into anger, making them implode, explode, and let out a fury that budges us to the edge of our seats. These people are screaming at each other, claiming righteousness, and who wins? Law? Empathy?
All of this is explored in this swift read. I could imagine a viewing of the play would make my heart race.
September 5, 2022
I'm watching this play, not reading it, but I need to give it five stars SOMEWHERE just so I don't start shouting out a window
Edit: okay I see why the second half knocked it down a (half)star for some people. After the scene between Zara and Kitty it seemed to lose the thread about the sexual assault case a bit. But for me, the excellent pace and extremely witty dialogues definitely made up for the slightly messy ending.
Very impressive how she made a play about such a heavy subject so engaging and even funny, without ever making light of the subject
Edit: okay I see why the second half knocked it down a (half)star for some people. After the scene between Zara and Kitty it seemed to lose the thread about the sexual assault case a bit. But for me, the excellent pace and extremely witty dialogues definitely made up for the slightly messy ending.
Very impressive how she made a play about such a heavy subject so engaging and even funny, without ever making light of the subject
June 14, 2024
Read on the train
June 25, 2024
the sheer number of hours i spent thinking about this play... i just love the way nina raine plays with language also anna maxwell martin as kitty was very sexy
April 5, 2021
i had seen the play 2018 in the west end transfer and now had the chance to see it again online in the original production at the national theatre dorfman. it is of course a very « timely » play about sexual consent (and, between the premiere at the nt in 2017 and the west end premiere 2018 #Metoo had become one of the main topics, so it became even more « timely »). it shows two couples in their mid-thirties, the husbands (and one of the wives) are barristers, and their two single friends tim - a prosecutor and zara, and actress. kitty, who is (in a way) the main character, is the wife of edward, who will be tim’s oponent in court a rape case with tragic consequences. he will also be accused by kitty of « marital rape » in the second act.
the dialogues are smart and sparkling, even though i found the repetitive swearing in edwards character a bit forced and tiresome. most of the action takes place at dining parties, and everybody has affaires in almost all possible combinations, which is well done but also a bit too predictable to be interesting.
where the play starts being interesting - in Tim and Edward’s opposing and (on Edward’s part) extremely cynical treatment of the rape case - i wished it could have shown more depth and developed the character and story of the rape victim more then it did - as it is, it is over almost before it really started.
same feeling about the « marital rape » in the second act, which seems to have been of minimal or no consequence - too little for it to give weight to the play. other then that, it is a smart and entertaining middle-class couples piece well worth reading and seeing on stage.
the dialogues are smart and sparkling, even though i found the repetitive swearing in edwards character a bit forced and tiresome. most of the action takes place at dining parties, and everybody has affaires in almost all possible combinations, which is well done but also a bit too predictable to be interesting.
where the play starts being interesting - in Tim and Edward’s opposing and (on Edward’s part) extremely cynical treatment of the rape case - i wished it could have shown more depth and developed the character and story of the rape victim more then it did - as it is, it is over almost before it really started.
same feeling about the « marital rape » in the second act, which seems to have been of minimal or no consequence - too little for it to give weight to the play. other then that, it is a smart and entertaining middle-class couples piece well worth reading and seeing on stage.
February 10, 2019
I wasn’t totally sold, it felt a bit dated in its attitudes.
November 13, 2025
second act went a bit off track but first act went HARD, can't wait to write my paper 6 essay on this and prima facie and be super smart and amazing and intelligent yes laura you go girl
May 6, 2021
Jeez
For someone who grew up with a family of lawyers and a barro for a dad this was quite a read
For someone who grew up with a family of lawyers and a barro for a dad this was quite a read
May 15, 2021
A stimulating and dark look at the nature of consent. I struggled a bit with the, in my mind, overlong legal analogies as I was more interesting in the interplay between the couples and the characters. Although it did make the point that it is scary how consent is viewed from a legal point of view. Really quite a sad play all in all.
May 28, 2022
A play I have both seen and read. A modern and important story about friendship, romantic relationships, and the politics of consent.
June 15, 2021
Some good dark humour but I'm wondering if the play feels a bit too messy? It reminds me of Patrick Marber's Closer, where everyone is always swapping romantic partners. Perhaps the most interesting part was the first act, where the legal case and personal affairs of the lawyers had a more contrasting relationship to one another. The second act by comparison was a little more conventional and flat.
I think this was a good play that missed out on being a truly great one. However, I'd definitely read more of her work.
I think this was a good play that missed out on being a truly great one. However, I'd definitely read more of her work.
June 11, 2024
Whip-smart, funny, disturbing. Consent walked so Prima Facie could run. Its power lies in its shifting of narratives and achieves precisely that: power. Who has it? What does it mean to manipulate it? Very good.
May 26, 2019
What is justice, what is vengeance, and which is right?
The victim, Gayle, asks plaintively why no lawyer represents her. The cross-examination delves into her history, but leaves her attacker’s previous behaviour unexamined. Ed explains that presumption of innocence rests on the belief that it’s better for guilty men to go free than an innocent man to be convicted. But why is that better? asks Gayle. The lawyers have no meaningful answer for her.
***
"My first play, Rabbit, was about young professionals and when it came to writing Consent, I thought I’d really like to see where these kind of people are at, now that their marriages are beginning to have a bit of wear and tear and they have young children in their lives. Or they don’t, and they yearn for them. I felt that there’s something about children that makes people incredibly vengeful, very greek (tragedy). It was interesting for me to combine this with the legal world. (...) I always love little fragments of life that can then expand into a whole scene – so even just a sharp comment that you might witness between a husband and wife at a dinner party can be the seed of a whole invented scene. My inspiration came from this, and partly the court case that I walked in to which opened a door for me with this play.
Post Weinstein, in the era of #MeToo, and I Believe Her, this play certainly has an extra vibration humming through it. I wouldn’t say it’s completely on message which I’m pleased about because I don’t think a play should just be a cheerleader for things. I think it should air issues, not tie them up neatly with a bow.
Consent is relevant to #MeToo in that there’s a rape victim in the play that really doesn’t get a fair hearing and she gets spat out of the justice system. Justice is not done. The thing that really shocked and surprised me when researching the play was the fact that in a rape trial the victim does not have a lawyer allocated to him or her. So a barrister is prosecuting the rapist, he is not defending the victim – so there’s no one to actually stand up and defend the victim. If you’re lucky the prosecuting barrister may re-examine your evidence to try and make you look a bit better, if it serves his case or her case. That lack of formal defence for the victim really quite amazed me.
I’ve never had a play be so overtly of the moment I think. I hate the idea of writing a Brexit play; kind of immediately, instantly responding. It takes me so long to write a play. Normally I just get very involved in an idea and I brew it for years, which means it can’t possibly respond to current events, but in this case the timing has just worked. It’s like a wine that I’ve had in the cellar and it came out at just the right moment that it was ripe."
The victim, Gayle, asks plaintively why no lawyer represents her. The cross-examination delves into her history, but leaves her attacker’s previous behaviour unexamined. Ed explains that presumption of innocence rests on the belief that it’s better for guilty men to go free than an innocent man to be convicted. But why is that better? asks Gayle. The lawyers have no meaningful answer for her.
***
"My first play, Rabbit, was about young professionals and when it came to writing Consent, I thought I’d really like to see where these kind of people are at, now that their marriages are beginning to have a bit of wear and tear and they have young children in their lives. Or they don’t, and they yearn for them. I felt that there’s something about children that makes people incredibly vengeful, very greek (tragedy). It was interesting for me to combine this with the legal world. (...) I always love little fragments of life that can then expand into a whole scene – so even just a sharp comment that you might witness between a husband and wife at a dinner party can be the seed of a whole invented scene. My inspiration came from this, and partly the court case that I walked in to which opened a door for me with this play.
Post Weinstein, in the era of #MeToo, and I Believe Her, this play certainly has an extra vibration humming through it. I wouldn’t say it’s completely on message which I’m pleased about because I don’t think a play should just be a cheerleader for things. I think it should air issues, not tie them up neatly with a bow.
Consent is relevant to #MeToo in that there’s a rape victim in the play that really doesn’t get a fair hearing and she gets spat out of the justice system. Justice is not done. The thing that really shocked and surprised me when researching the play was the fact that in a rape trial the victim does not have a lawyer allocated to him or her. So a barrister is prosecuting the rapist, he is not defending the victim – so there’s no one to actually stand up and defend the victim. If you’re lucky the prosecuting barrister may re-examine your evidence to try and make you look a bit better, if it serves his case or her case. That lack of formal defence for the victim really quite amazed me.
I’ve never had a play be so overtly of the moment I think. I hate the idea of writing a Brexit play; kind of immediately, instantly responding. It takes me so long to write a play. Normally I just get very involved in an idea and I brew it for years, which means it can’t possibly respond to current events, but in this case the timing has just worked. It’s like a wine that I’ve had in the cellar and it came out at just the right moment that it was ripe."
May 8, 2025
Fucking depressing. Christ.
Nina Raine is a new playwright to me but after hearing about her I wanted to read some of her plays. And wow, even in about 120 pages she has made a clear impact with her style and strength of writing. The actual content of the play isn’t my favourite, it’s almost too dark and real for me to want to go back but it has made me think a lot even in the short time reading it. There are 6 friends - Kitty and Edward, newly expecting, Jake and Rachel, also together with kids, Zara, and Tim. Rachel, Tim and Edward are lawyers, and Tim and Ed are on opposing sides of a rape trial. The play goes through many phases, with love and sex changing between people multiple times, resulting in jealousy, guilt, grief, revenge and all fatal human flaws coming between all the characters. They each feel super three-dimensional even just from the text and they manage to all be unlikeable at times, just like real people. Even despite the dark story I understand this play needs to feel real, and I am very intrigued to look further into Nina Raine’s plays beyond this. It questions morality against the law and the current world we live in in terms of consent and physical crime. And it is so hard to sum up everything because honestly I think I need some time to think. I don’t think I’ll forget this play anytime soon. I hope I can watch it one day.
Nina Raine is a new playwright to me but after hearing about her I wanted to read some of her plays. And wow, even in about 120 pages she has made a clear impact with her style and strength of writing. The actual content of the play isn’t my favourite, it’s almost too dark and real for me to want to go back but it has made me think a lot even in the short time reading it. There are 6 friends - Kitty and Edward, newly expecting, Jake and Rachel, also together with kids, Zara, and Tim. Rachel, Tim and Edward are lawyers, and Tim and Ed are on opposing sides of a rape trial. The play goes through many phases, with love and sex changing between people multiple times, resulting in jealousy, guilt, grief, revenge and all fatal human flaws coming between all the characters. They each feel super three-dimensional even just from the text and they manage to all be unlikeable at times, just like real people. Even despite the dark story I understand this play needs to feel real, and I am very intrigued to look further into Nina Raine’s plays beyond this. It questions morality against the law and the current world we live in in terms of consent and physical crime. And it is so hard to sum up everything because honestly I think I need some time to think. I don’t think I’ll forget this play anytime soon. I hope I can watch it one day.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 6, 2023
this play is brilliant. heart breaking, funny, realistic, brutal, devastating.
the impact of every action that the characters take can be felt in ripples as it affects everyone else on stage. the law is a dangerous and difficult thing.
i watched the national theatre production of this play alongside reading and it was wonderfully acted. moments of joy and celebration instantly transformed into confrontation.
the small number of characters means that this play feels very claustrophobic, adding to the tense atmosphere that dominates it.
brilliant
the impact of every action that the characters take can be felt in ripples as it affects everyone else on stage. the law is a dangerous and difficult thing.
i watched the national theatre production of this play alongside reading and it was wonderfully acted. moments of joy and celebration instantly transformed into confrontation.
the small number of characters means that this play feels very claustrophobic, adding to the tense atmosphere that dominates it.
brilliant
August 8, 2017
An amazing script to what I'm sure is a spectacular - and important - play. I hope someone brings this out as a local production sometime; Nina Raine - a great writer - here has created a masterpiece, her best play to date, a modern classic, or at the least something very, very important. A powerful piece of writing - very dark and funny in places too.
January 23, 2020
The intelligence in this book about the ways she portrays rape in its legal terms is very clear and extremely well done. It is obvious the construction of the play was thought throughout and it works very well. However, I didn't feel a personal connection with any of the characters, which is extremely rare for me. Very good play, but I wasn't able to connect with it.
April 18, 2021
Wow wow wow wow. Consent contains some of the best written dialogue I've ever read, so witty and erudite and funny and fast-paced, and the play as a whole deals with a handful of quite weighted themes without it ever feeling heavy-handed or forced. Really fantastic text, would love to see it in performance!! I'd give it four and a half stars if I could :))
January 7, 2026
A really excellent play that makes full use not only of drama as a medium, but also the setting as a medium through which the characters express/represent various ideologies. Really clever writing that sparks Act 1 into flame and sustains even the slightly messier sections of Act 2. (I just wish it had a strong monologue...! I want to do one but they're all vaguely duologues!!)
November 24, 2017
On first speed read, tricky devil of a play shifting roles/partners/stagings to blur the lines between truths. Idk if it feels fully human at times, but truth or dare, and the ending, certainly sear.
May 27, 2024
4.5 Stars.
Smarter than it tries to be. And funnier than it has any right to be, considering the subject matter.
So cleverly written.
The only thing stopping me from giving this 5 stars is I don’t think a single one of the characters is even remotely likeable lol
Smarter than it tries to be. And funnier than it has any right to be, considering the subject matter.
So cleverly written.
The only thing stopping me from giving this 5 stars is I don’t think a single one of the characters is even remotely likeable lol
April 22, 2025
exceptional. the legal territory of rape & the in/justice of human behaviour & yeah, just the texture of the dialogue - remarkable. i think i sat at a picnic table outside a pub in walthamstow eavesdropping on a convo betwren these characters once.
August 22, 2017
An outstanding drama, placed uncomfortably close to reality.
May 5, 2019
just as harrowing as it is brilliant.
June 23, 2020
yeah veryyyy cool takes on justice, and the dialogue is beautiful!! side not never seen such attention to staging in a play before, using it for dramatic effect =good!
June 30, 2020
It took me a little while to get into this one but at the end, I enjoyed it. Some big themes at play and some great dialogue. Felt the ending was rushed, though.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews