The Almeida theatre in London is staging a rare UK revival of Clifford Odets's 1937 drama Golden Boy, marking Josh O'Connor's return to the stage after a decade focused on screen work. O'Connor plays Joe Bonaparte, a talented New York violinist who abandons music for boxing during the Great Depression, risking his hands for quick money under pressure from a scheming manager. The production is notable for reviving a play that has fallen out of fashion in Britain, and for showcasing O'Connor's stage return in a role that charts a man's moral and emotional hardening.

Directed by Sam Yates, the staging uses a live string quartet and violin performance to represent Joe's musical gift, while boxing scenes are conveyed largely through offstage action and stylised video effects on a suspended punch bag. Strong supporting performances come from Daniel Mays as the manager Tom, Hayley Squires as Lorna, and Zubin Varla as gangster Fuseli, though the review notes the romantic and tragic elements don't fully cohere, and the blend of period drama with expressionist staging can feel uneven.