‘Hello, I’m professor Einstein,’ declares John Hinton as he greets each audience member, playing a young Einstein with the mad hair and thick accent that you’d expect. He is undoubtedly endearing and warm and promises to be an entertaining host for our physics lecture, but unfortunately the lecture part of this piece overwhelms what are otherwise lovely performances and interesting ideas.

Beginning with simplified and well thought out explanations of Einstein’s most famous theories, and moving through all of the key moments in his life, it feels at times that too much has been crammed into this one hour whiz through such a seminal scientist’s life and work. This is certainly an intelligent piece and the idea to place Einstein’s colourful character and genius in a theatrical setting is a very good one. However, it is the lack of attention to the fact that we are in a theatrical setting that lets this piece down. Although some funny and charming audience participation is used to physically explain scientific theories (and this is done twice in much the same way each time) little else is used in terms of stage craft to illustrate Einstein. There were numerous moments when my own imagination hungered for a break in the discourse. Einstein’s theories and the physics behind them are packed full of awe inspiring imagery – bending light and gravity, black holes and the universe in all it’s glory – yet these are not presented to the audience, and it’s somewhat difficult to engage with the masses of information delivered.

This is not to say that the piece isn’t entertaining. Hinton is a joy to watch and a very talented performer, and the songs, accompanied by Jo Eagle on piano, are very well written and witty. However, after some time, the pattern of discourse and explanation followed by a song becomes a little predictable. As Einstein’s life moves forward, with a hilarious sprinkling of talcum powder used to denote the ageing of the man, we are introduced to the darker elements of his work with the development of the nuclear bomb. Whilst a definite change in tone and pace give this subject gravitas, this could have been pushed much further. The idea that a person’s work can turn into a monster and ultimately go on to cause such an atrocity as Hiroshima is a very weighty one, and perhaps warrants a whole piece in itself.

I love the idea of mixing science with art, but in this context the science should perhaps become artistic rather than the art becoming scientific.