Review: The Mountaintop, Edinburgh Lyceum
- Lisa in the theatre
- Jun 6
- 3 min read
Updated: Jun 9
Katori Hall's Olivier award-winning play about MLK's final night has opened at the Royal Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh and plays until 21 June 2025.
The Mountaintop: Written by Katori Hall | Directed by Rikki Henry
The Mountaintop by Katori Hall, Lyceum Edinburgh ★★★★☆
Katori Hall's imaginative play about Dr Martin Luther King Jr's last night on earth, The Mountaintop, has begun a 3-week run at Edinburgh's Royal Lyceum Theatre. Set at the height of the American Civil Rights Movement in 1968, The Mountaintop takes place entirely in Dr King's Memphis motel room on the night before his assassination.
Hall's fictional account begins when an exhausted King (Caleb Roberts) returns to his motel room after making his "I've Been to the Mountaintop" speech at a rally for the local sanitation workers. He orders a hot coffee from room service, which is delivered by maid Camae (Shannon Hayes.) As a storm rages outside the motel room, King and Camae share a cigarette, flirt a little and discuss a wide variety of topics from the mundane to the serious.
There is a twist to tale as we discover why Camae is really there, and the play perhaps won't go in the direction many first expect. But The Mountaintop is one of those "what if?" plays that is so intelligent and well conceived that it really works as an alternate, albeit offbeat, narrative.
Meet a different Dr Martin Luther King Jr. in The Mountaintop
Inside room 306, we meet a Dr Martin Luther King Jr that is far removed from the exalted 'preacher on a pedestal' image we see on the news clips. Here we meet an ordinary man with holes in his socks, who fusses over shaving off his mustache. His infidelities play on his mind as he tries to write a speech that continue his tireless work for equal rights.
Caleb Roberts and Shannon Hayes are both excellent. Roberts is riveting; he lends King a calm and intense voice without ever falling into parody; and Hayes is a joy as his spirited, resolute sparring partner. A few words of Camae's dialogue did elude me here and there, just because of the speed at which it's delivered. The book is full of beautiful prose and sharp humour that you really don't want to miss.
I was enthralled and intrigued by these characters and their story, but this single act, 90 minute play does run 10 minutes too long. Some scenes could be cut from the middle without losing any impact. The pillow fight, for example, didn't feel as believable as the rest of the imagined scenarios.
The Lyceum's The Mountaintop is a stylish production
One of the highlights of this play is the staging. Very easily The Mountaintop could've been set in a static, boring, 1960's motel room. But Hyemi Shin's set design is extraordinary. Yes key parts of the motel room are present, but within a far richer, more interesting world filled with curiosities from King's life.
The central action takes place atop a massive stone which rises up from a mound of loose dirt. As the play progresses, the stage comes alive, and Rikki Henry's sprightly direction ensures that every inch of it is used to maximum impact. Benny Goodman's precision lighting keeps our attention focused where it needs to be while the rest of the stage waits in atmospheric darkness. The attention to detail is wonderful, with car headlights constantly passing outside, the thunderstorm and more punctuating King and Camae's conversation.
The entire presentation of this production, from the posters to the staging, is oh so stylish.
The Mountaintop gives us a glimpse of an ordinary, extraordinary man in a private, intimate environment at one of the key moments in his life - and in modern history. What did happen inside MLK's motel room that night? We will never know. But this reimagining reassures us that his legacy lives on.
A thrilling, thought-provoking, powerful piece of theatre ★★★★☆
The Mountaintop plats at Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh until 21 June 2025.
The Mountaintop, Lyceum - Secret Seats
Edinburgh Lyceum Theatre are running their popular 'Secret Seats' scheme for The Mountaintop.
You can book a bargain, unreserved ticket for £15 but you won't find out which seat(s) you actually have until the day of the performance. You could be seated in the Upper Circle or the stalls - it's like a lottery.
More info on the Lyceums' Secret Seats and full T&Cs here:
The Mountaintop Edinburgh Cast
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Caleb Roberts
Camae Shannon Hayes
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