The notices for Act of God are in, and they part company on the very thing the play is built around. Jacob O’Connor’s debut, which had its press night on 10 November at Riverside Studios, casts him as Jack, a young man from Wythenshawe sent on a ten-week course of therapy through poetry, with Lucy Blott as the therapist trying to get him to say the one thing he will not. At the warm end are two five-star notices and a four, and every reviewer whose full notice we could read admires the two performances. Where they divide is the storytelling: some find the fractured memories and the late twist gripping, while The Spy in the Stalls thinks the narrative muddled and the in-the-round staging of Sean Turner’s production a hindrance, and The Stage’s headline says the piece needs some reshaping.
3.6 / 5 from 7 criticsThe verdict: seven reviews in so far, all of them rated: two five-star notices, a four, a 70 per cent score from The Reviews Hub (three and a half stars), two three-star reviews and two stars from The Stage. That averages 3.6 out of 5. The critics agree on Jacob O’Connor and Lucy Blott; they disagree on whether the play around them holds together.
What are critics saying about Act of God?
All That Dazzles
“A phenomenal piece of theatre”
Reviewer: Holly-Lily
Holly-Lily has no reservations. She calls it the most powerful thing she has seen in some time, and credits O’Connor’s writing with landing every joke while letting the darker material hit just as hard.
“The ratio of humour to drama was balanced perfectly and made it so powerful.”
She is equally taken with Turner’s use of the round, which turns the audience into the walls of Jack’s room, and with an ending that makes everything before it read differently.
West End Best Friend
“A masterclass in acting and storytelling”
Reviewer: Ophelia Fellhauer
Fellhauer finds that Jack avoids the stock portrait of the emotionally stunted young man, and that Blott keeps her two characters so distinct that the mystery unfolds without the audience ever losing its way.
“it is nearly impossible to imagine anyone else playing Jack but O’Connor himself.”
She singles out the poems as the play’s best device, and gives the writing as much credit as the acting for scenes that recur without ever feeling repeated.
Read Ophelia Fellhauer’s full review at West End Best Friend
Theatre and Tonic
“An affecting and thought-provoking piece of theatre”
Reviewer: Annie
Annie finds the hour absorbing from start to finish and praises a script that never manufactures easy sympathy for Jack, with Turner’s direction giving the heavier scenes their urgency.
“Lucy Blott delivers a beautifully measured performance as Sarah/Sophie, her composure providing a striking contrast to Jack’s volatility.”
For a first play, she judges it remarkably accomplished.
The Reviews Hub
“Punchy, gripping, unexpected”
Reviewer: Anna Peterson
Peterson reads the play as a fresh look at masculinity through a Northern working-class lens, and admires the control of two actors with an unbroken hour and nowhere to hide.
“O’Connor embodies the character of Jack such that his presence fills up the small room”
Her reservation is depth: she finds the characters a little thin and some of the resolutions too neat, though she calls the twist genuinely shocking.
The Spy in the Stalls
“Its two performers bring considerable conviction to the material”
Reviewer: Sammi Xing
Xing rates both performances highly but is the cooler voice on the writing, finding the fragmented memories hard to follow, so that the suspense never quite builds.
“Unfortunately, the performances are often more compelling than the story they are trying to tell.”
The intimate staging is a second problem in this notice, with sightlines blocked by the front rows, and frequent scene changes keep breaking the momentum.
London Box Office
“Certainly a timely play”
Reviewer: Francesca Shaw
Shaw admires the chemistry between the two actors and the nuance with which Blott moves between roles, and enjoyed the light and sound that mark out the flashbacks.
“This piece of new writing is not just able to conjure complex and captivating characters, but presents a gripping plot that kept me intrigued throughout.”
She likes, too, that the play leaves its audience to piece the story together, and praises a raw, emotionally charged turn from O’Connor.
Also reviewed by: The Stage (Holly O’Mahony, two stars, “Needs some reshaping”), whose review sits behind a sign-in wall.
Our earlier news story on Act of God has more on the production, and this week’s other roundups include Dogstar at Hampstead Theatre and Cloud 9 at the National Theatre.
Act of God runs at Riverside Studios until Thursday 26 November 2026.
