THE Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, which is currently showing at the New Theatre in Oxford, is, quite frankly, brilliant.

The play, directed by Simon Stephens and based on the best-selling novel by Mark Haddon, gives us a tender glimpse into the life of 15-year-old Christopher Boone, who suffers from Aspergers, a form of autism.

The two and a half hour performance, comical in places yet heartbreaking in others, is an expertly-crafted drama that each of the Adver’s new theatre critics thoroughly enjoyed on Monday night.

The star of the show was undoubtedly lead actor Scott Reid, whose portrayal of a timid and somewhat insentient Christopher was flawless in its depth and authenticity.

Christopher was brought up amid the breakdown of his parents marriage followed by the news that his mother had died suddenly of a heart attack.

His raison d’etre for most of the play, however, was investigating the murder of his neighbour’s dog, whom we first see lying on the stage with a pitch fork drilled into its ribcage.

His investigations lead him down many different paths, each of which holds its own danger for poor Christopher.

Each actor maintained a very high standard throughout and their unblemished performances were matched, if not beaten in places, by the efforts of the production team, whose lights and sounds dazzled.

David Michaels put in a brilliantly convincing performance as Christopher’s downtrodden father, Ed, and Emma Beattie managed to convey the heartache that comes with being mother to a son incapable of understanding the quagmire of adulthood.

Overall, a brilliant performance by all.

— THOMAS HAWORTH