The Women of Llanrumney at Stratford East – review

Following last year’s premiere in Cardiff, debut award-winning playwright Azuka Oforka’s The Women Of Llanrumney has arrived at Stratford East in London. Set in 1765, and based on the real-life Llanrumney plantation in Saint Mary parish in Jamaica, we delve into the complexities of the Transatlantic Slave Trade portrayed through the eyes of three distinct women.

This sugar and rum plantation was originally owned by Captain Henry Morgan, who was born in Llanrumney, an area in South Wales. Directed by Patricia Logue, the play gives an insight into the little-known participation of Wales and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

Elisabeth Morgan (Nia Roberts) is heading for financial ruin after squandering and mismanaging her financial assets. Plus, her plantation crops are damaged and it will cost £20,000 to clear all of her debts. Her pending downfall will have a detrimental impact not only on herself as she’ll be forced to take a three-month boat trip back to Wales, but also on the lives of her enslaved staff.

Alongside Elisabeth, the cast includes housekeeper Annie (Suzanne Packer) and daughter Cerys (Shvorne Marks), who are joined by Matthew Gravelle, playing all three male characters and the different accents that go with each role.

Cerys is pregnant and could not be more different in her defiant attitude than her doting mother, Annie, who wouldn’t even dream of eating the slave master’s food. Cerys, in contrast, is disgusted by the greed, and gluttony of white people – wasting food and money at any given opportunity.

She is proudly on a mission to join the slave rebellion, speaking in hushed tones about the plan to revolt and using her mother tongue whenever she can. Although both are outspoken, they have different priorities. Annie is loyal to Elisabeth, confusing her servitude for friendship, whereas Elisabeth makes no qualms about selling Annie along with her other assets – be it property, land, or human beings.

Seeing the desperation and the lengths the enslaved had to go through to gain a glimmer of humanity is not an easy watch but Packer’s performance as she goes from delusional to awakened is a joy to behold. As is Marks’ obvious hatred of the abhorrent treatment of enslaved people with her heart firmly set on freedom – there is something remarkable about seeing the revolt unfold and the rousing drums and sound of uprising fill Stratford East.

Stella-Jane Odoemelam’s set and costume design perfectly depict the plantation era and transport us to this problematic period of time – comprising of a typical two-storey house with a balcony and foliage. Elisabeth wears opulent robes, reminiscent of this period of time.

Despite some aspects of the play making for uncomfortable viewing, the ending is uplifting and worthy of a standing ovation especially with March being International Women’s month and press night taking place on 25 March, the International Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

This play is perfectly timed as we celebrate the unheard, unsung heroic women of the slave rebellion. As painful as it is to go back to that dreadful time, Oforka has written a poignant, historical play which boldly salutes the fierce, feisty and brave enslaved women of that period and serves as a testament to their resilience and resistance. It also highlights that there is still so much we do not know about the horrendous legacy of the brutality of humanity and those who fought against these atrocities.