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Stars explained: * A production of no real merit
with failings in all areas. ** A production showing evidence of not
enough time or effort, or even talent, and which never breathes any real
life into the piece – or a show lumbered with a terrible script. *** A
good enjoyable show which might have some small flaws but has largely
achieved what it set out to do.**** An excellent show which shows a
great deal of work and stage craft with no noticeable or major
flaws.***** A four star show which has found that extra bit of magic
which lifts theatre to another plane. |
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Jennifer Groome, left, Bethany Grainger, Katie
Brown, Jessica Schneider and Rebecca Wilbrooke The Ballad of Maria Marten The Nonentities The Rose Theatre, Kidderminster ***** Live theatre should always be entertaining in some way. Just sometimes though, it is extraordinary; and something immersive, educational, and truly creative is played out on the stage, allowing us, the audience, to become a part of it. From the moment we take our seats and are greeted by the brooding silhouette of the 3D barn against a deep red sky; the set design is astounding; hats off to Set Designer Jen Eglinton and Lighting crew Joe Priest, for creating gorgeous depictions of sunshine, dusk and sunrise. The atmosphere of each scene is electric, and without giving too much away, the fire scene is especially impressive, and had us gasping! The Ballad of Maria Marten, written by Beth Flintoff, sets out from the beginning to do something very different. That is, to reclaim the life of Maria, not just to lurk in the gruesome details of her death. Impressively we see no gore throughout this show, no brutal reenactment of her murder. The premise confronts us from the start, mocking us, the audience, for expecting blood and titillation. An impressively multifaceted Bethany Grainger infuses ‘Maria’ with charisma, humour and humility, she makes her a real person, and we are right there with her, from a young girl through to her death and beyond. Hers was a complex character, with a complex life.
Jessica Schneider, left, Rebecca
Wilbrooke Jennifer Groome Katie Brown and Bethany
Grainger Indeed, some of the story is told by her ghost, whilst other scenes take us directly into the scenes as they happen. Two unusual aspects of this show jumped out at me quite quickly; firstly, there are NO men on the stage at any point. The point is to reclaim the voices of the women, thus the male characters; brothers, husbands, lovers, are either off ‘stage’ or played by the women themselves. It’s a really interesting way to present the story. The second aspect is that the costume changes of Maria are carried out in front of our eyes, moving the story along. She is literally dressed and redressed by her friends. This makes complete sense, given the play is primarily about friendship. Sound plays a big part in the immersion of the story too; from the nature sounds of the countryside to the deep, dark cello music of the play’s darkest moments. Joyful moments include the bawdy songs the girls sing as they perform their jobs and duties, as well as a fantastically carefree ‘country dancing’ scene which takes place at the annual cherry fayre. These happy moments remind us that Maria wasn’t just a girl who was murdered; she was a girl living a life, finding her way in the world. She was a friend, a lover, a daughter, a mother, a sister, a woman.
Bethany Grainger, left, Melanie
Jones, Jessica Schneider and Katie Brown The supporting cast are a wonderful motley crew played by Melanie Jones as Maria’s neurotic but kind-hearted stepmother Ann, and her friends are brought to life by Katie Brown, Rebecca Wilbrooke, Jennifer Groome, with a wonderfully comedic and sassy turn by Jessica Schneider as the hilariously fed-up young mother who keeps popping out babies like peas from a pod! Special mention too, to Props and Wardrobe – Anne Booth and Day Rhodes, and Alix and Donna Abram – for the authenticity of the historical details and costumes that really placed us at that time in history. All the key details and facts are in this play are based in truth. From Maria’s lovers and babies to the green handkerchief found around her neck after death, to the supposed ‘premonitions’ her stepmother had about the whereabouts of the body. The show brings life and vivaciousness to the woman Maria Marten, to fill in the details of who she was, what she stood for, her friends, her lust for life. This is a beautiful story, but also haunting and tragic, even laugh out loud funny in many places. Not an easy feat for such a dark historical tale. It feels uncomfortable to have laughed so loudly a few seconds previously, only to be dashed back down to earth amidst the real horror that follows. But it is written so well, performed so perfectly, that you submit to the rollercoaster. It is sobering. But it is an important story that deserves to be told. For Maria Marten and everyone who cared for her. An outstanding piece of theatre. Maria is burning down the Rose until Sat 28th Feb. Alan Birch 23-02-26 |
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