Review: DELIVER US FROM EVIL, Bridewell Theatre
Photo credit: Supplied by the production
Witchcraft has kept the imagination of filmmakers and playwrights ticking over for many generations. With a heady mixture of superstition and magic, it remains a staple feature of the horror genre with its supernatural overtones. This play, written by K.S. Norris, is based on her ongoing PhD research on the East Anglian witch trials at the University of Essex. The Bridewell Theatre provides the setting for an economical 60-minute play that lays bare the impact on a deeply religious community.
England in the 1640s is being ripped apart by the bloodiest of civil wars. Oliver Cromwell will soon lead the country into a Puritan dominated Republican era. The sleepy Essex village of Manningtree has been shaken to the core by accusations of witchcraft. Local magistrates have ordered the arrest of Elizabeth Clarke (Anastasia Babich), a lost soul haunted by the spectre of her mother, executed twenty years previously for witchcraft. Matthew Hopkins (Finton McCluskey) is a young man living in the shadow of his late father, a highly respected local priest. He sees an opportunity to prove himself and volunteers to interrogate Elizabeth Clarke.
For a play that runs at only 60 minutes, it packs in a lot of detail that reveals much about the fabric of society in 17th Century England. The total reliance on religion and the comfort that faith brings is striking. Anything that remotely challenges the church is greeted with fear, suspicion and downright hostility. What would now be seen as baseless superstition was once branded as devil worship. Those accused could only prove their innocence if they drowned as a less grizzly form of death. Denunciation was commonplace and retribution was brutal.
The five-strong cast work well as an ensemble and benefit from authentic costumes that faithfully represent the period in question. In addition to the leading actors, Rob Wallis, Nika Kamaeva and Emily Fellows all lend sterling support. The set is stripped down to simple tables and chairs and a hollowed out tree, where Elizabeth's mother took refuge. The austerity seemed entirely in keeping with the spirit of the era. Deliver Us From Evil is more of a history lesson than entertainment but undoubtedly makes its mark. It's a play that makes us work much harder than other shows but sometimes the reward is greater. This play shows great promise as it sheds on light on a dark period of British history.
*** Three stars
Reviewed by: Brian Penn
