REVIEW: A LESSON FROM AUSCHWITZ @ WHITE BEAR THEATRE

🎭 A Lesson From Auschwitz

📍 White Bear Theatre, 138 Kennington Park Road, London, SE11 4DJ

🗓 Saturday 31st January 2026

⭐️ 5 Stars

AN EXCEPTIONAL PIECE OF WORK

There is a specific kind of silence and discomfort that descends upon an audience when they aren't just watching history, but are being made complicit in it. At the White Bear Theatre last night Brother Wolf's A LESSON FROM AUSCHWITZ doesn't just ask for your attention, it demands it.

It isn't just the proximity to the actors, but the way the play refuses to let you remain a passive observer. For fifty minutes you aren't just watching a history lesson, you're trapped in a room with a monster.

James Hyland, who also wrote and directed the piece, delivers a performance of bone-chilling precision as Rudolf Höss. He has a terrifying coldness about him. He doesn't play a caricature. He captures an unsettling blend of military discipline and sudden, jagged cruelty. Watching him pace the stage, you don't see an actor. What you see can only be described as evil incarnate - a true physical threat. You feel the weight of his "logic" and you understand that he truly believes that he is the good guy.

In the annual Pink Prince Theatre Review of the Year, Hyland won Actor of the Year 2025 and his performance here just confirmed to me just how strong an actor he really is.

Opposite him, Ashton Spear as the Jewish prisoner Abraham Könisberg is remarkable. It's a role that demands incredible physical endurance. For much of the play, he remains a silent, haunting presence, yet Spear's ability to portray a terrified humiliation through nothing but his eyes and his trembling frame is absolutely astounding. His performance is anchored in his physicality. The seemingly involuntary tremor of a hand or the defiant look in his eyes speak louder than any monologue could. There is an undeniable strength to the character as he refuses to be a victim.

The staging is sparse. In this tiny off-West End space, the starkness of the set, which is little more than the actors and their costumes, forces the focus onto the visceral hatred on display. Hyland's writing is chillingly captivating, expertly weaving historical reality into a narrative that feels dangerously current. The script masterfully avoids the trap of feeling like a museum piece.

There is a shockingly brutal physicality to the piece. The violence is not gratuitous but deeply purposeful, making me and the rest of the audience feel like voyeurs to an atrocity. At one stage I thought he was going to invite one of us to literally take the whip and deliver a blow to the prisoner. Even though this didn't happen, there's no denying the feeling of guilt that is felt. This is the plays greatest strength. You leave feeling less like you've seen a show and more like you've survived an encounter.

I was left with a feeling of being shell-shocked. It is rare for a play to give such a fresh take on such a well-trodden subject, but this is a raw and uncomfortable testament to the power of small-scale theatre.. It is an important reminder that we must never forget - and quite frankly, after seeing this, you won't be able to. It's a piece that sticks in the throat long after the lights come up.

To learn more about James Hyland's work and to find details of upcoming tour dates for A LESSON FROM AUSCHWITZ and his other productions head to https://www.brotherwolf.org.uk/

Neill Kovacic-Clarke

All views are my own and I pride myself on being honest, fair and free from influence. Theatre is subjective and it is important to remember that all views expressed are just those of one person.

My ticket for this performance of A Lesson From Auschwitz was gifted by Brother Wolf Productions who invited me to watch the show in exchange for my honest review. The fact that my ticket was gifted played no part in the content of my review or the star rating given.

CAST LIST:

Ashton Spear as Abraham Könisberg; James Hyland as Rudolf Höss

RUNNING TIME (approx):

50 minutes, with no interval

CONTENT WARNINGS:

Violence and brutality; Anti-semitism and racism; Intense emotional content

AGE RECOMMENDATION:

14 +

To keep up to date with all the latest theatre news and more, follow Pink Prince Theatre on social media.

Find us on Instagram, Facebook, BlueSky and TikTok.