Kafka never let Josef K have birthday cake for breakfast – the first indignity in The Trial is not getting his morning meal from the cook. But 12-year-old Josie K is devouring a slice when she’s visited by a mysterious man in a suit in Katie Hims’ play for children (nine and over) which explores Kafka’s themes of guilt, shame and responsibility.
It is very much inspired by, rather than directly adapted from, the classic novel. This three-hander takes Josie on a labyrinthine journey but has no lawyers, priest or appearance from the fearsome thrasher and there’s no butcher’s knife finale.
