Each His Own Wilderness

Like the novels for which she was best known, the great Doris Lessing’s obscure 1958 play strips the veneer from British society with merciless precision. In it, Lessing, who died in 2013, lays bare the gaping generational gulf dividing a country still reeling from war and struggling with the future.

No wound is left un-prodded when Myra’s son, Tony, returns, traumatised, from National Service. His disgust at the men she entertains and contempt for the causes she supports sets the scene for an explosive conflict of values. Socialism, gender politics and the H-Bomb are all in the mix as Tony rails against Myra’s activism.

This stingingly intelligent play is packed with arguments about where people should place their priorities that still feel relevant in today’s post-recession British cultural landscape, as the political football of international versus domestic needs is booted around in the lead-up to the general election.

Reflecting Lessing’s novelistic style, it’s also a dense and wordy piece – which could make for a theatrically tough-going few hours if it wasn’t for a cast that excel at bringing life to the page. In what is only the play's first major production, 'Each His Own Wilderness' feels a little static at times. But director Paul Miller largely succeeds at finding heart and humour in the play as well as brain.

There’s strong support from Susannah Harker as Myra’s friend Milly, worldly-wise in a house stifled by misunderstanding. But the play really belongs to Clare Holman and an outstanding Joel MacCormack as Myra and Tony. They’re utterly electric as a mother and son who pour years of personal pain and frustration into each other until all that’s left is a scorched past and an uncertain future.