women beware women

photo: @13thnighttheatreco (instagram)

Much like the last piece I reviewed, 'Women Beware Women' is an incredibly interesting play to watch as someone who feels they have some stake in the issues it addresses. I felt that this piece impressively made me question the message you may have been encouraged to take from it when it was written.

It was clear that what the audience was being shown was women caught up in a world of hierarchy, power imbalance and male desires, forced to twist these things for their own gain in order to survive. The relationship that suggested this to me the most was the arranged marriage of the Ward, played by Sean Farrell, to Isabella, played by Maria Potter, arguably one of the least sinister pairings. The scenes of courtship providing lighter moments of comedy drew you into this storyline, making the violence of the Ward's outburst when he learns of Isabella's affair that much more horrific. The nitpicking of young women, and the reaction of violence when learning of her perceived 'impurity', is a storyline that comes a little too close to home.

This production was excellently cast, with each performance giving weight to the issues of the play. The weighted, emotional performances of the young women caught up in the power struggles pulled your sympathies, balanced against the older women's more cynical use of manipulation for their own gain, a manipulation born out of a need to survive in their world. The production still allowed for the humanity of all the characters, particularly seen in Amelia Pike's portrayal of Livia. Despite her seeming hardened against the world, her youthful rejuvenation upon finding love again emphasised the tragedy of her need to manipulate those around her. Natasha Mula's skilful use of comedy as a guise for her character's real intentions, and Sean Farrell's boyish energy as a cover for a some shocking misogyny really pulls you into their characters and makes you forget the more sinister aspects of their roles, which makes the outcome that much more disturbing.

Mya Grace Kelln's artistic control over this piece created an incredibly sinister atmosphere which made it difficult to forget the the underlying issues in the play at any moment. The all white costuming implied a guise of innocence and purity which hid everything more sinister below subtly but clearly. The symbolic moment between the Duke and Bianca, which did not spell out what was happening between them for the audience, but instead created a question of how consensual this moment was, and the visual effect of Lani Blossom Perry subsumed by the crowd and hidden from sight by the larger frame of Oscar Chandler was very powerful. Contrasting this moment with when Livia and Leantio begin their affair, a much more obvious physical moment between the two characters, and one that gave the female character much more power, meant that the issues and questions of the play were explored throughout every element of this piece, making it an incredibly cohesive production that leaves you thinking about the power struggles between male and female in this play for long after you leave the theatre.