Multi-award winning stage and film star Brian Cox (Succession) stars in Oliver Cotton's play The Score, transferring to the West End following a successful run at Theatre Royal Bath in 2023. Directed by Trevor Nunn (Les Miserables), Cox portrays the legendary genius of composer Johann Sebastian Bach, as he finds himself in a fateful encounter with the King of Prussia, Frederick II.

Find out what the critics had to say about the West End's latest addition!

The Telegraph

"Brian Cox is magnificent as he returns to the stage"

"It almost works brilliantly as a play of ideas and under Trevor Nunn's fleet direction, the piece attains a sense of urgency despite its gilded period trappings (we are now back in an age of autocrats, and expect our artists to challenge the status quo)."

The Times

"It helps, of course, that the irascible Bach is played by the no less irascible Brian Cox. His volcanic presence, around which the hit TV drama Succession revolved, adds gravitas."

"If you already love Bach's music, you'll be charmed. If you're a newcomer, this is a stately way to get better acquainted."

Daily Mail

"It's a fairly gentle walk in the park for Cox, and Trevor Nunn's grand production allows his leading man to sit for much of his time on stage. But that doesn't mean Cox lacks vigour. His rich tenor voice glows like a homely fire letting off the odd falsetto spark of surprise."

The Guardian

"The Succession star excels in Oliver Cotton's play about the meeting between the composer and Frederick the Great"

"The production is redeemed by its star billing in Brian Cox, who plays the genius musician with such magnetism that he almost singlehandedly saves this play."

"Even when the script is careening from period comedy to philosophical debate on doubt and salvation, Cox has the ability to dart from light to dark which the others can't quite navigate."

The Stage

"Oliver Cotton's shapeless script spins this historical footnote into a rambling meditation on ethics, inspiration and the clash between the ruthless rationalism of the Enlightenment with the inflexible absolutes of religion. Though the themes are compelling, they are inelegantly articulated, with much of the run time taken up with nebulous philosophising and stuffy conversations about musical notation."