“Look to your left. Look to your right.”

It’s official. If you thought Jodie Comer was a great actress on screen, she’s just as extraordinary to watch live!

After bidding an emotional goodbye to her iconic character Villanelle in the final series of Killing Eve, the versatile Liverpool actress has finally seized the opportunity to showcase her remarkable talents on the big stage. And by that, I refer to the world of theatre…the Harold Pinter Theatre to be precise!

On Tuesday 19th April, I had the joyful pleasure of seeing Jodie produce a spectacular West End debut across 100 uninterrupted minutes in the powerful one-woman show Prima Facie.

Conceived by renowned Australian playwright Suzie Miller, the legal drama explores the taboo subject of sexual assault through the eyes of ruthless yet successful barrister Tessa Ensler. From the moment Jodie appears on stage, you can’t take your eyes off her as her character revels in explaining to the audience about the legal system and the bold responsibility of defending perpetrators of sexual assault.

Aided by the frenetic use of sound and a blistering soundtrack from BRIT Award nominee Rebecca Lucy Taylor (of Self Esteem), it sets the pulses racing, especially with such a fast-paced script that hardly allows you to take a breather.

It’s easy to presume that Tessa is pompous early on, especially with the personality traits of arrogance and bravado. However, we soon come to realise that she has had to fight her way to the top of her profession through humble beginnings. This is demonstrated by Jodie’s unique ability to mix between accents, whether it be posh or her natural scouse vocals when describing her working-class family back in Liverpool.

Additionally, it’s a testament to Jodie’s commitment to this show that she isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty, whether that involves moving large tables across the stage or changing outfits with hundreds of eyes watching her.

When focusing on Tessa’s social side, the script manages to inject humour to add to the hustle and bustle of her productive life, with Jodie showing off her comedic talents both vocally and naturally. The sight of her doing some twerking on top of a table is a sight to behold!

However, the tone soon switches gears halfway through the show when Tessa herself becomes the victim of rape at the hands of her faceless colleague. While the attack itself isn’t shown, the terror and emotions are captured majestically by Jodie, especially so soon after her recent portrayal of wronged noblewoman Marguerite de Carrogues in last year’s cinematic (and criminally-underseen) epic The Last Duel.

From that moment onwards, Tessa finds herself out of love with the law and now doubting everything about herself and those around her. It’s no surprise to see Jodie completely embody the trauma, especially with those tearful eyes that left many audience members (including myself) floored and filled with goosebumps.

The second half of the show also relies on careful direction from Justin Martin to capture Tessa’s pain as she faces a losing battle against the legal system that made her and the injustice towards female victims. Additionally, the use of lighting design is also clinically used, particularly in a drawn-out sequence that showers our main protagonist in water to match her many, many tears.

This eventually leads to a bittersweet conclusion that sees Tessa tower over her audience and address the call for change in a moment akin to the anti-government rant that former Jodie character Sarah delivers in the grim climax to Channel 4’s topical COVID drama Help.

It goes without saying that Prima Facie is unflinching viewing, yet it deserves to be seen for asking difficult questions about sexual consent and the many flaws of the legal system. One can only hope that future audiences will embrace the timeliness of this show over the next several weeks. Whether it leads to higher prospects on Broadway or success at next year’s Oliver Awards, we shall have to see.

However, we can’t finish this review though without giving the final word to Jodie.

When Killing Eve aired its controversial final episode a couple of weeks ago, there was a sense of dread that the mass fallout would threaten to overshadow her West End debut. Thankfully, her tour-de-force turn here is enough to convince those loyal followers that she has so much more to offer away from V.

There’s no question that even at 29, Jodie has the poise and professionalism of so many great actors before her to deliver commanding performances on such an intimidating stage like live theatre. She’s flourished with monologues before, but this role is on another level.

From a personal point of view, it’s career-best work from her, and it’s frightening to know that she has the ability to eclipse that even more!

A night I will never forget.