But perhaps this acceleration, and confusion on the part of the audience, is meant to convey that of the protagonists themselves. Or are we assumed to be so familiar with the story that no explanation is needed? The changes in the financial universe the Lehmans finally inhabit, with its global computer networks and algorithms, is hard to deal with dramatically but surely it is the climax to which this lengthy evening leads? Entertainment is fine, but don’t we need to understand the tragedy? Or the darker side of the Brothers’ success.

Who in antebellum Alabama actually produced the cotton they brokered? After the Civil War the Brothers realise that “Everything here was built on crime.” And, “The Slaves are Free!” Which is an over-simplification, to say the least. These jarring notes don’t sit well with the light tone and clever mimicry one finds elsewhere, such as the ritualised wooing of the Lehman Brides and the personal eccentricities of Bobby Lehman. The intention may be to humanise these extraordinary characters but it risks distracting from the business at hand. 

And isn’t Business at the heart of this story? But what have we learnt? That the Lehman family found their mojo in Alabama but lost it somewhere in Manhattan. Would the story have more impact if it had been run backwards? Perhaps, but as realised here, The Lehman Trilogy makes a compelling evening’s viewing.