A Manifesto is a one-man show which sets out to tackle a lot of heavy themes: masculinity, creativity, the scourge of AI. It’s a lot for one man to take on, and to his credit, writer and performer Alex Hetrick gives it a good crack. We meet him lying prone on stage in a futuristic shell suit. He quickly drags an unwitting audience member on stage and demands he holds a set of comically large cue cards before rifling through a list of things which no longer exist in his timeline. It’s a strong opener, like a sort of Instagram slideshow translated into a stand-up bit, made more compelling with Hetrick’s deadpan delivery and lingering eye contact. 

The rest of the play is structured around more of these skits: AJ, Alex’s character, plays virtual golf with an online friend called Nigel; he argues with his budget-friendly AI model, O-NO; he is force fed milk containing nutritional supplements whilst wearing a comical baby costume. Each section contains intriguing nuggets; Hetrick clearly has an ear, as well as a voice, for comedy, delivering even the cheapest toilet humour with enough commitment to warrant a round of laughs. What’s missing is a narrative thrust to drive us from one bit  to the next. While AJ is an enjoyable host, by the end of the show you still feel you know little about him. His titular manifesto, delivered only in the final five minutes of the show, feels unearned, and unrelated to what has come before. 

AJ relies on his crowd for answers to his questions and approval for his choices. It’s a bold choice for a show  which may not draw the largest  audiences, and as such some awkward silences arise. You get the sense that this is sort of the point he’s trying to make though. Creating stuff is hard, why wouldn’t you turn to AI, as AJ does, for suggestions along the way? By putting the workload onto his crowd, Hetrick  gains their sympathy in his plight for affirmation. 

A Manifesto has a lot to say but seems unsure how to say it. It doesn’t quite work as a play but neither is it  committed to being a character comedy. Hetrick is heading in the right direction though, and with some thematic pruning and commitment to a singular style he could surely develop 2050 into the witty state of  the nation piece he envisions. 

2050: A Manifesto is at Clover Studio at Greenside @ Riddles Court until Sat 29 Aug 2026