This incendiary play is described as Kafkaesque. Kafka wrote fantasies. The horror of this play is that so much of it is realistic.
Kafka wrote fantasies. The horror of this play is that so much of it is realistic
The play begins in Kafkaesque mode. There are two women in a room. Nessa has just come out of the ER. Her memory is hazy, she doesn’t know where she is or why she is in this room. She doesn’t want to cause any inconvenience – she just wants to continue her journey home. Val is brittle, remarkably unsympathetic, and evasive as to her own role; why Nessa is detained, and seems to be collecting evidence against Nessa for some unstated charge.
This trope becomes a little frustrating as it clashes with the naturalistic elements - packets of goldfish crackers, mobile phones – and the fact that we know the play relates to the very real issue of abortion laws. Fortunately, the story soon begins to unfold, and the characters and plot come together with the naturalistic style to make a gripping parable about the morality (or otherwise) of the state, and where personal responsibility lies.
The play takes flight as different elements of Val’s character are revealed. Rather than a machine-like authority figure, or even a harassed jobsworth, Val becomes a mother with a career, domestic responsibilities and tensions, and at times, seems almost as trapped as Nessa.
Nessa’s baby has died in the womb. Her misfortune was that her plane was re-routed to Dallas, where the state of Texas has made abortion illegal. The legal trap Nessa has fallen into is that a brand new state law means a person who dies in Texas is a citizen of Texas until legal transfer. The summary is that Val has been appointed the legal representative of the dead baby, and Nessa will be forcefully confined in Texas until the foetus comes to term, even though this will put her life at risk.
The ‘citizen of Texas’ law is made up (this becomes more apparent as the play continues). However, this fictional element is totally justified in the context of the play. It is used to dissect the studied carelessness of right wing ‘reformists’ and their indifference to the consequences of their laws. And it highlights the human cost (both to the people caught in these laws and those obliged to carry them out) in relying on legal test cases to ‘iron out the wrinkles.’
Both actresses are completely convincing in their roles. Diana Brooke’s Nessa is all polite reasonableness. But behind this, the actress conveys a steely determination that makes Val, and the audience, consider how the buck stops with each of us. The part of Val is particularly difficult to play, as the character’s professional display of competence, and even personal beliefs, are in conflict with her inner sympathies. Elisabeth Nunziato skilfully maintains this ambivalence until the very last beats.
The author, Arlene Hutton, has stated that her inspiration for the play was rage, but she has created a political play of admirable subtlety, control and power.
