By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN?: Monday 28 September, opens 5 October and runs through 21 November 2026 RUNTIME: 135 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

The most interesting thing about the new play Schnapp from Netflix’s Stranger Things has chosen for his stage debut is the dramatic rug pull it executes at the beginning of its 2nd act transforming the audience’s perspective.

• Read on for reasons including how Schnapp has the potential for a promising stage career ahead of him if he so chooses

We shan’t say much more about that so as not to spoil any surprises but it more than makes up for a lacklustre 1st act in which Schnapp is very much part of the ensemble cast rather than the star of the show.

Affluenza by season artistic director Andy Sandberg is set in the Hamptons and inspired by a real-life US court case where financial privilege was raised as a legal defence following a teenager’s drunk-driving crash in which people were killed.

Schnapp is the teen who shows some remorse but has clearly led a prosperous young life during which his exasperating parents played here by the brilliant Juliet Cowan (Broken Glass, Young Vic) and Donald Sage Mackay have neglected their responsibilities.

Throw in a promising young lawyer with a name to prove, given life by Rupert Young (FLYBY, Southwark Playhouse), who wants to be a parent and whose wife introduces him to the affluenza term and the drama takes hold.

We were surprised to see Strictly Come Dancing‘s Janette Manrara in the cast in a non-dancing role and she’s a little dead-eyed as the victims’ families lawyer advising them to settle because of the multi-million dollar amounts on offer. But she has multiple roles which allow her to show her acting range.

So it’s left to a teacher unphased by the money and determined for justice to be seen to be done in the name of his daughter who may not speak as a result of the crash who refuses to cash in.

We were a little disappointed at the end of Act 1 at how little we’d seen of Schnapp but definitely stick around for Act 2.

Schnapp plays a different character there showing his versatility but also making us think a little differently about the ramifications of the events we’d seen unfold in Act 1.

Affluenza felt like an idea that we weren’t sure we’d wanted to see unpacked but author/director Sandberg does so in a way here which fully utilises this venue’s TV history.

Fans of Schnapp can also be assured that he’s strong onstage despite only being part of an ensemble here and has the potential for a promising stage career ahead of him if he so chooses.

• Main pictures by via Facebook courtesy Riverside Studios Tickets
• Have you seen Noah Schnapp before and what did you think of him? Let us know what you thought in the comments below
• Enjoyed this preview? Follow monstagigz on Twitter @NeilDurham, email neildurham3@gmail.com and check us out on Instagram and Facebook