‘Well-made’ Abbey revival of The Sugar Wife is truly a play for today

Theatre review

Síofra Ní Éilí and Siobhán Cullen. Photo: Ros Kavanagh

Emer O'Kelly

A national theatre has a duty as part of its remit to engage with contemporary issues. So the Abbey Theatre has commissioned a play that deals seriously with the historical issues of slavery.

Except no, it hasn’t. Elizabeth Kuti’s The Sugar Wife, given a new production at the Abbey, was first produced in 2005 by Rough Magic, directed then by Lynne Parker. I saw it then. And I have never forgotten it.