The creative engagement between theatre and science has received extensive attention since the pioneering Theatre of Science conference at the University of Glamorgan (now the University of South Wales) in 2004 and the groundbreaking book Science on Stage: From Doctor Faustus to Copenhagen in 2006. Topics like theatre of chaos, performance and evolution, and plays with the theme of mathematics and physics have been carefully investigated over the past few decades. Based on these firm foundations, The Cambridge Companion to Theatre and Science, a comprehensive piece of work edited by Kristen E. Shepherd-Barr, further explores the resonance of theatre and science with a broader historical period and richer elements of interaction between the fields.

The collection opens with Shepherd-Barr's brief but significant introduction. Notably, she gives an overview of the field by reviewing twenty-four fundamental books and articles devoted to the subject. This can be useful for emerging researchers as it provides a handy entry point for gaining necessary information. The body of the volume, which is structured in fourteen chapters, follows two themes. One is the mainstream genre of the ‘science play’, while the other is the diverse ways that theatre and science interact.

The authors of the former topic inherit the research tradition set by Shepherd-Barr in Science on Stage, but broaden their horizons to emerging scientific phenomena, such as theatre and ecological issues, medical science and cognitive science. For example, through revisiting a classical philosophical text like Plato's Cave, as well as Shakespeare's Hamlet and Becket's Endgame, through the perspective of geology, Carl Lavery finds out the ‘ecological potential’ (p. 57) embodied in those Western works. Chapter 5 is concerned with the issue of endangered species through a detailed analysis of Deke Weaver's project The Unreliable Bestiary. Medical science also attracts the critics’ interest. Staton B. Garner Jr takes Wit (1995) as an example of how the patient's emotional needs are ignored during the cancer treatment to critique the objectification of the patient as a medical case rather than an individual in the modern hospital system. In chapter 7 Fintan Walsh gives an account of how contagion affects urban residents. The description of the rapid spread of plague throughout the city, as well as overworked doctors and irresponsible newspapers in Neil Bartlett's The Plague (2017), vividly reminds readers of the hard days we have overcome in fighting against COVID-19. Elsewhere, Rhonda Blair and Amy Cook investigate the relationship between cognitive science and theatre, concluding that the interaction between the two domains is a two-way process.

The latter theme, which is a newer development for both theatre producers and researchers, stands out as the most striking part of the volume. In chapter 2, Jane R. Goodall presents a study on the ‘alternative’ science play, a genre to probe how to actually stage scientific notions rather than just talk about it. Mike Vanden Heuvel looks at devised theatre, holding that its multiple creative voices and diverse storytelling modes meet the complex demands of contemporary science. Michael Carlin, much to readers’ surprise, delves into the ways in which theatre and science function as social interventions, such as the scientific-themed Christmas Lectures and the theatrical-spectacle autopsies. In the lecture, scientists present experiments or undertake autopsies on a public stage rather than in confined laboratories or hospitals, making the lecture a theatrical performance. The audience is clearly aware of its theatricality, through their paying for the ticket and the emotional reaction to the show, such as delight, stimulation, tension or even fear. The demonstration also contributes to ‘a more scientifically literate public’ (p. 131) by informing and educating the audience about scientific knowledge. In the closing chapters, Frederique Ait-Touati and Shepherd-Barr give an account of the important role technology plays in theatre from ancient to contemporary stages, which is an entirely original exploration within this field.

Overall, The Cambridge Companion to Theatre and Science provides a timely summary of the latest trends in theatre and science. Its widespread coverage of scientific topics and dramatic performances, alongside insightful investigation, makes the collection one of the must-read books in this field. It is therefore a pity that the arguments are still limited to Western theatre and culture, and that the stated ‘broad cultural coverage’ and ‘geographical spread’ (p. 16) are hardly seen throughout the collection. However, the volume has engaging themes and perceptive arguments that deserve our time and attention. Apart from researchers directly involved in this field, who will find it a resourceful companion, the general reading public, especially those interested in popular science and dramatic arts, will be able to engage with the book's scientific propositions and post-dramatic performance methods.