Susan Granger’s review of “The History Boys” (Broadhurst Theater)
Set at a provincial secondary school in the north of England in the mid-’80s, Alan Bennett’s “The History Boys” examines the role of the educator as eight precocious, hormone-propelled sixth-formers (high school seniors) prepare for their Oxbridge examinations in history.
Set in the 1980s, the plot hinges on the competition between two very different teachers for the emotional and intellectual loyalty of their students. There’s rumpled, rotund Hector (Richard Griffiths, best known as Uncle Vernon from the Harry Potter films), an unconventional, idealistic maverick who tries to imbue a thirst for pure knowledge, even as he covertly gropes his charges on after-school motorcycle rides. Then there’s his pragmatic rival, Irwin (Stephen Campbell Moore), who has been specifically engaged by the ambitious, bureaucratic headmaster (Clive Merrison) to instruct the boys how to formulate their upcoming presentations from the glib, provocative angle of a tabloid journalist – with hopes that they’ll be able to bluff their way into top-notch schools like Oxford or Cambridge. Leveling the playing field is a dour third teacher (Frances de la Tour), who has spent years imparting cold, historical facts.
In a flash-forward that opens the play, Irwin is now a verbally dexterous spin doctor advising the British government how to promote a bill that will abolish the legal presumption of innocence. “Paradox works well and mists up the windows, which is handy,” he says. “The loss of liberty is the price we pay for freedom ‘type of thing.”
Originally staged by Nicholas Hytner at the National Theatre of Great Britain with the same superb cast, “The History Boys” has been transported to Broadway with its same cheeky candor and unflinching verve. As an added fillip, flashing videos by Ben Taylor disguise the scene changes within Bob Crowley’s sly production design. It’s the first time an entire production has been moved across the Atlantic intact – with every actor coming from abroad. Thank you, Actors’ Equity! And there’s a “History Boys” film coming too.