Hindsight, as it has been said many times before, is a wonderful thing.

Back in 1993, when David Hare’s The Absence of War first premiered at the Royal National Theatre, many critics regarded it as the weakest instalment of his trilogy of state of the nation plays.

The piece, about another ill-fated Labour election campaign, was deemed too “journalistic” and that the protagonist, George Jones, was actually just then-party leader Neil Kinnock re-imagined as a London bachelor.

Hare, who had been given access to the inner workings of Kinnock’s doomed bid for No 10, has always defended the play, claiming it should be viewed as a classic.

It has been cheekily revived ahead of this year’s election, and it seems critics and audiences have finally got onboard with the playwright’s thinking.

The Absence of War, a co-production by Kingston’s Rose Theatre, Sheffield Theatres and Headlong theatre group, comes to Kingston for an 11-night stint this month.

“The problem when it was first performed was that there wasn’t enough distance. You need a bit of distance to see this as a work of art,” says Cyril Nri, who plays Oliver Dix, George Jones’ chief of staff.

“It’s still set in 1992. He [Jones] has some of the attributes of Kinnock, but you have to remember this is George Jones. He’s a different person. It’s not just about a particular location or time.

“It's the rise and fall of a man.”

Surrey Comet:

In a career spanning 32 years, Nri has appeared in some of Britain's most iconic TV shows. He played Graham, a barrister friend of Miles and Anna's in cult 90s drama This Life, and spent four years as Superintendent Adam Okuru in The Bill, between 2002 and 2006.

Most recently, Nri was outstanding in Russell T Davis' excellent Cucumber, a seven-part Channel 4 drama about gay middle-aged men living in Manchester.

Neither is he a stranger to the stage, having studied at the Bristol Old Vic and started out in the Royal Shakespeare Company.

This will be his first time on the Rose Theatre stage.

“What’s great about this play is it’s not only a tragedy but a farce,” says Nri.

“And I think the performance by Reece Dinsdale [George Jones] is actually a thing of wonder. I think it overshadows both John Thaw and Malcolm Storry [the two actors to previously play George Jones].

“Maybe because they were both far too close to the time and Reece had a chance to look at it in a historic manner and put it into the story.”

The Absence of War, Rose Theatre, 24-26 High Street, Kingston, Tuesday, April 14 to Saturday; times vary, £9-£26, rosetheatrekington.org or call 020 8174 0090.