Airswimming
January 30, 2009
Courtyard Theatre
27 January to 15 February 2009
A Doris Day wig, a whisk, two baths and two ‘moral imbeciles’ all feature in Charlotte Jones’ first play, which tells the story of two young women incarcerated in St. Dymphna’s Hospital for the Criminally Insane. This is not the usual set-up for an examination of social injustice.
Airswimming follows Persephone and Dora, ‘Porph’ and ‘Dorph’ as Dora calls them, during the fifty years they share in St Dymphna’s from 1924-1978. It tells the story of how two very different women develop a deep and lasting friendship. The audience surrounds the action in The Courtyard Theatre and the sparse set of two iron baths creates the impression of a clinical and cold environment which is to be the character’s home for the next fifty years.
Persephone’s fascination and obsession with all things Doris Day, including a blonde wig, is a recurrent theme in the play. Through a mixture of songs such as the haunting “Que sera sera” there is a poignant sense of inevitability and helplessness that pervades throughout. “Fly me to the Moon” is played while the women go ‘airswimming’, a moving and funny sequence which demonstrates a carefully synchronised routine as just one of their means of escapism.
Katie Cotterell is excellent in her role as Dora, the woman who embodies the British ‘stiff upper lip’ attitude. She captures her military air perfectly but is able to show glimpses of vulnerability through the armour. Helen Bradbury’s Persephone offers an effective contrast with her shy and bewildered demeanour and girlish fantasies. She is particularly endearing to watch in her moments of innocent excitement such as having a whisk without batteries.
Director Gemma Kerr succeeds in presenting a play which does not veer into overly emotional territory but remains rooted in a humanistic tale of friendship and hope. The play serves as a reminder of the injustice that many women endured who had children out of wedlock. Although there is sometimes ambiguity over the leaps in time the action takes, it is engaging to watch and the performances are exceptional.
- Sarah Blissett
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