[title]
Bombs, guns and trenches are all very well, but what about the perils of tea, cake and gossip? Men may have been fighting on the frontline in World War I but Two’s Company’s revived trio of obscure plays written during the Great War about women in wartime reminds us of the battles fought at home while their boys were away.
Maybe not their boys: in Maude Deuchar’s ‘Handmaidens of Death’ a group of young women munition workers can’t get beaus because all the eligible bachelors have left to fight, while JM Barrie’s ‘The Old Lady Shows Her Medals’ highlights the pressures women with no sons felt at that time. It captures beautifully the resilience of spirit and the need for human connection.
The first piece, Gwen John’s ‘Luck of War’, is the most nuanced and forward-looking of the three. Young war widow Ann remarries after her husband is officially missing in action. When he returns one morning, we see first hand how social norms such as marriage were turned upside down by the conflict.
There’s some wonderfully succinct writing here and each piece compliments the others, offering refreshing insight into what British women had to deal with.
Susan Wooldridge’s performance as Mrs Dowey in ‘The Old Lady…’ falls beautifully between comedy and poignancy. Elsewhere, Victoria Gee’s turn as Ann Hemingway in ‘Luck of War’ is formidable, while the whole ensemble cast are very strong.
Tightly and fluidly directed by Tricia Thorns, with an excellent, versatile set of men-less homes from Alex Marker, this is a complex and funny evening. It’s a snapshot of some of the unlikely issues faced by women during that brutal conflict, which still speak to us today, 100 years on.
By Daisy Bowie-Sell