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Hampstead theatre, LondonBoris Spassky and Bobby Fischer’s 1972 match is a proxy war in this intriguing but overcomplicated chess drama
There has already been a musical, Chess, inspired by the contest between a Soviet master and an American challenger. Now comes a play by Tom Morton-Smith that dramatises the real-life battle to be world chess champion that took place in Reykjavik in 1972 between Boris Spassky and Bobby Fischer. It’s an intriguing story but one told at excessive length and, unlike Morton-Smith’s brilliant 2015 play about Robert Oppenheimer, it never gives sufficient heft to the ideological context.
The play presents us with two classically contrasted opponents. Spassky is the coolly orthodox reigning champion who abides by World Chess Federation rules. Fischer is the brattish maverick who arrives late, criticises the venue and spits in an official’s face. Even if we know the outcome, there is a fascination in seeing how Fischer’s tactic of breaking his rival’s ego succeeds not only in undermining Spassky but also in inducing paranoia among his team. We are also reminded of how the federation caves in to Fischer because so much money is at stake. Continue reading...