There is no doubt that Identity Theatre have taken on a huge play in producing Lucy Kirkwood’s The Welkin. Looking at it simplistically, this is the story of twelve women in 1759 who are empanelled by a Court to decide whether a woman already found guilty of murder is pregnant, which would change the sentence from hanging to transportation. But this is merely the framework, the setting, for a much richer and deeper story, and although you could take this on many levels, there is nothing straight forward or simple about this play: it is richly layered and deeply thought provoking, and in many places, laugh out loud funny.
Lucy Kirkwood has taken a bold step in making Sally Poppy: the character around which the whole tale pivots, extremely unlikeable. Polly Jones truly embodies this character with every movement and sneer and even the slovenly way she wipes her nose with her bound hands; and yet, even though she is completely unrepentant, we feel sympathy for her as the matrons discuss their views on her fate. The way power balances and changes through the play is fascinating: Sally Poppy technically has none, yet holds personal power in the room despite that. Even though the women have less power in the community generally, here they have power over the life of someone, and whereas some seek to do the right thing, some are set on abusing this new status.
Another great skill from the writer is through the simple swearing of the oath on the bible: each of the women, in the fewest words imaginable, tell us volumes about who they are. Each of them has an agenda, some are more obvious than others who hide secrets until confronted. The way each of the actors in the play has grasped their roles and created full, gritty, often grimy, sometimes hateful characters is absolutely gorgeous: we know who each of them are, we feel their pains, their joys, their lives. Each is full and fleshed out. They are all so adept at their craft we are able to just sail on the story as it unfolds, completely in the moment and believing it all to be totally real.
The cast is universally strong, and this is an ensemble piece; yet it has two leads: Sally, and the midwife Lizzy Luke played by Joanna Ackroyd who absolutely shines in this role: the voice of nurture and care, of reason, of wanting to preserve life. She conveys the whole, deep, perfectly imperfect character with ease, embodying all her complexities and both inner and outer conflicts with brittle feistiness mixed with vulnerability.
After the first two scenes, it is in the deliberation room that this play truly flows, sings, and comes to life. Denied food and even water, this room becomes a crucible for all the worst things in human nature as well as the most noble. We live with these women and their hopes, dreams and fears; in a society where they are already seen as so much less. And then the parable suddenly hits home, asking the audience how far we have come as a human race, and are we still stuck here, in this small room, trying to protect our little corner of the world, with all our defensiveness and divisiveness at the ready if we feel threatened. This play is a mirror: for society, for the way women are seen, treated and mistreated; and often viewed in just a capacity for physical function of bearing children. It’s also a mirror for confronting the darkest parts of ourselves.
Identity Theatre’s brilliant choice here is to allow the play to be, to challenge, and to deliver the story, and not to hammer any agenda. The details directors and producers Nettie Sheridan and Gary Cook have added in for example the costumes, the soundscape, the lighting, and the soot on the women’s faces after a fire explosion; all help to tell this unique drama. The a cappella ‘Running Up That Hill’ is utterly gorgeous. This is an authentic and truthful production and an absolute joy to see: funny, shocking, inspiring, challenging, and heartbreaking; all at the same time.
Wagner Hall, 23 October 2024
The Welkin runs until Saturday 26 October 2024
Photos credit: Miles Davies Photography
