United Kingdom Olivia Revan’s Lambslaughter: King’s Head Theatre, Islington, London, 17.4.2026. (JH) ****
I have to admit I wasn’t sure what to expect from Lambslaughter, but my husband spotted a neat ambiguity in the title — lamb slaughter or lamb’s laughter — and that turns out to be rather fitting.
What we get is a story of two Year 12 girls at a Catholic school in Merseyside (sixth formers to those of us of a certain age), beginning to test their power — over themselves, over each other, and over an erudite young male English teacher — in 2013.
At the centre are Jade and Chloe, who between them embody two sides of the same idea. Jade is quiet, self-effacing, ascetic and rather saintly, devoted to her studies and her family but with a fragile sense of self-worth. She barely eats, worries about her appearance, and feels invisible next to Chloe. Chloe, by contrast, is confident, argumentative and ambitious, sexually experienced, and with her sights set on a legal career. She is more assured in her looks and her influence, though there are hints of neglect at home which explain some of that outward certainty. The two are close friends, though it is clear from early on that the balance between them is not entirely stable.
Into this comes Mr Barrett, a young English teacher with an Oxford background and a disdain for social media and popular culture. Initially sharp-tongued and abrasive, he gradually softens as he draws the girls out in challenging discussion, particularly around Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and Shakespeare’s Macbeth. In both cases, his focus is on the witches — agents of disruption and chaos — which becomes an increasingly clear thread running through the play.
Chloe clearly sees Mr Barrett as a challenge, though he resists her more obvious attempts to engage him. Instead, his attention turns more quietly towards Jade, encouraging her, looking out for her (there is a recurring motif of chocolate), and helping her to find more confidence. That shift does not go unnoticed.
There is a darker turn when Chloe, in a moment both theatrical and unsettling, produces a doll and stabs it repeatedly — a witch-like act that sits somewhere between frustration, jealousy and something more symbolic. From that point on, the atmosphere becomes more strained. The friendship between the two girls begins to fracture, particularly after a heated exchange in which Jade tells Chloe that her older boyfriend is being unfaithful. And Chloe tells Jade that Mr Barrett’s fiancé has died, although when and how is unclear.
What follows is the play’s decisive turn. An anonymous school Twitter account, which has been hovering in the background, suddenly makes a serious allegation against Mr Barrett, and the consequences are swift. The final scenes, particularly those involving Jade, are quietly affecting, though the play leaves just enough unsaid to keep you wondering exactly where responsibility lies.
Olivia Revans’s debut play, directed by her and produced by Jack Steadman, is set in Liverpool, and there is an energy and wit in the writing and in the relationship between the two girls that reflects that — particularly in Chloe’s character. I have to admit it took me a little while to tune into the dialogue, but once settled it felt natural enough. The themes — jealousy, rivalry, a certain hidden religious polarity, and the shifting power dynamics of adolescence — will be familiar to most, though the recurring idea of women as agents of disruption, echoed through the witch imagery, gives the play a darker undertone.
The performances are well judged throughout. I thought Freya Jones was particularly strong as Jade, capturing both her vulnerability and her gradual emergence with real subtlety. Erin Riley brings energy and edge to Chloe, making her both compelling and unsettling. Louie Threlfall convinces as Mr Barrett — intellectually assured but emotionally less certain, and increasingly out of his depth.
The production itself is very spare. Apart from a couple of desks, the stage is empty, with the atmosphere created through lighting and projected Twitter messages, which give some insight into the writer’s inner world. It works effectively, even if at times it feels reliant on suggestion.
The performance was a one off at the King’s Head Theatre London. It lasts 90 minutes without an interval. The audience at the King’s Head Theatre was noticeably young and responded warmly, with a standing ovation at the end.
Lambslaughter is not without its rough edges, but it is an interesting and promising debut, and one that leaves you thinking about how easily admiration, jealousy and influence can tip into something more troubling. It is worth catching when it appears again.
Lambslaughter is at the Shakespeare North Playhouse in Prescot on 18 and 19 June 2026 and for more information click here.
Jane Havergal
Cast:
Chloe – Erin Riley
Jade – Freya Jones
Barrett – Louie Threlfall
Creatives:
Writer and Director – Olivia Revans
Producer – Jack Steadman
Lighting designer – Jaroslaw Ciba