A new political satire at London's Tara Theatre takes audiences on an unexpected journey through Britain's complex relationship with immigration, featuring none other than former Prime Minister Theresa May as a spectral guide.
The Premise: A Ghostly Political Mentor
I Dream of Theresa May presents Nikhil, a young gay Indian cancer researcher played by Taraash Mehrotra, who becomes desperate to secure indefinite leave to remain in the UK. His story begins in 2013, a significant year for India when the legality of homosexuality was overturned.
Into his life appears a phantom vision of Theresa May in her former pomp as home secretary, portrayed by Amy Allen. This spectral figure emerges as if from a puff of smoke, clearly a figment of Nikhil's imagination, yet she becomes his unlikely mentor in navigating Britishness.
Staging and Performance
Amy Allen delivers a capable impression of the former Conservative leader, perfectly capturing May's distinctive voice and socially awkward demeanour. The production takes these characteristics further, presenting her as a kind of Tory politician from the zombie apocalypse, walking stiffly with arms dangling before her.
The stage design by Erin Guan makes May's 10 steps to Britishness literal, featuring dangling props and a towering screen flashing significant dates. The production is perkily staged with bursts of music and features strong sparring dialogue between Nikhil and his best friend Jyoti, played by Tanya Katyal.
Jyoti serves as the voice of social conscience - a trainee lawyer and activist with a keen sense of social injustice. Their repartee provides much of the production's humour and sting, though jokes about British assimilation covering queuing and weather talk feel somewhat tired.
Deeper Themes and Shortcomings
Under Natasha Kathi-Chandra's direction, the play incorporates clunky dreamlike interludes where characters appear in smiley-face masks. These sequences fail to achieve the sinister quality they seem intended to convey.
An important subplot involves Nikhil's parents rejecting his homosexuality, a serious issue that the production doesn't fully explore, instead using it primarily to emphasise his isolation.
The play references May's controversial 2016 speech about citizens of the world, though it's noted that this speech actually targeted globetrotting elites rather than those subject to today's anti-immigrant moral panic. Given subsequent political developments, including the rise of Nigel Farage and Reform UK, the drama feels somewhat historic, with May's rhetoric seeming almost tame by comparison.
At one point, Nikhil suggests that having a home secretary of Indian origin would change everything - a line that draws laughter for its irony. The play concludes with the suggestion that Nikhil might turn to politics himself, with May noting he represents a natural Conservative constituency: wealthy, well-educated and un-unionised.
I Dream of Theresa May continues at Tara Theatre in Earlsfield until 29 November, offering London audiences a distinctive, if imperfect, theatrical examination of immigration, identity and political conversion in contemporary Britain.
