By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ***

WHEN?: Saturday 17 October, and ran through 24 October 2026 RUNTIME: 90 minutes (no interval) Plays Edinburgh, Berlin and New York details far below

Oscar winner Swinton makes her New York stage debut next year in this curious monologue about a woman in 1930s Germany who puts on her dead husband’s trousers and never takes them off.

• Read on for reasons including where and when to see this production in the US, Germany and Scotland

Swinton won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 2007 for Michael Clayton and this is a role as Ella/Max she originated in Man To Man‘s UK premiere in 1988 at Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre, where it also returns, and the Royal Court as part of this venue’s own 70th birthday celebrations.

The thing to recommend it is Swinton’s performance which is never less than captivating in a production directed by Stephen Unwin which is interesting visually.

But what lets it down is Manfred Karge’s script – not an adaptation of Brecht’s Mann ist Mann – which feels like a verbatim retelling of a life story in date order with little thought to structure and how it might benefit from the surprise a non-linear form might lend.

It conveys successfully the considerable difficulties of being a woman in a man’s world and how fraught with danger a gender switch could be.

There are occasional moments of horror which should not be surprising given the political upheaval of the time, lurch to the right and descent into war.

There are some arresting images drawn, not least the death of a child forced to dance in shoes burning their feet, which linger long in the memory and the use of a microphone, a loudhaler and paint spattered against the stage’s backdrop catch the eye.

The Royal Court run ended this month, it’s currently playing in Edinburgh and then moves to Berlin and New York. Ticket and venue details are below.

We’re here because Swinton’s such an interesting actress and it’s a rare chance to see her onstage rather than on film.

The encounter doesn’t disappoint and reaffirms our thought that she’s 1 of the world’s most talented and versatile of actresses.

Unfortunately, this monologue isn’t quite the match for her attributes.

• Main pictures by Rüdiger Glatz via Facebook courtesy Royal Court Tickets
• Plays Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh 29 October – 7 November 2026 Tickets, Berliner Ensemble, Berlin 9-14 February 2027 Tickets and Lucille Lortel Theatre, New York 21 February- 25 April 2027 Tickets
• Have you seen a Tilda Swinton show before and what did you think of it? Let us know what you thought in the comments below
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