The Bathtub Heroine presents an incredibly biting piece of new writing telling the life story of tormented poet, Sylvia Plath. The audience is led on a journey through five chapters of Plath’s writing as known through her poetry and her semi-autobiographical novel
An incredibly well written love letter to the poet.
Sylvester’s Plath is an authentic and artistic performance. She is unapologetic and effervescent as she brings us along the poetic script. Sylvester fully embodies the character in Plath and you literally cannot take your eyes off her. With her vitality, you see Plath go through the key moments in her life and we can clearly understand the distinctions when Plath is conversing with another character, she impressively alternates between two characters and accents rapidly at times. Obviously very familiar with the script, Sylvester indulges in every single word in a display of confidence and comfort on the stage. Her self-direction is nimble and sharp, matching the pace and vigour of her writing.
Sylvia Plath, Your Words Are Just Dust is an incredibly well written love letter to the poet. Quotations of the poetry and the monologue written by Sylvester blends so seamlessly that it is hard to tell these apart, even to a Plath aficionado. The script is written in poetic verse so the whole show reads with a rhythm that keeps the pace informative and can at times almost feel lyrical. Furthermore, the language used, like Plath’s writing, is not plain on the surface but in fact encourages the audience to think deeper to understand the imagery and metaphor.
Alice Sylvester is intense and gripping as Sylvia Plath, leading us through her traumatic yet fascinating life story. This unrestrained performance is a powerful consideration of a fractured human being worn down by several misfortunes. Its poetic authenticity creates a fiercely intense piece of new writing.
