CANCELLED
My apologies. We will do the Welkin on 24 April
Firstly, some very belated photos of our little trip to see Witness for the Prosecution in January. I think we all really enjoyed it! We had lunch beforehand and then had time to enjoy the beautiful architecture inside the old County Hall - I grew up in London under the LCC and yet had never been inside County Hall before, so I did, I'm afraid, find it quite exciting. Anyway, the Council Chamber was an excellent setting for this play, the actors were very good and the stage well used! What more can you want?
But back to the Brussels based activity! Thank you again for agreeing to meet on 20th March! We will read a play that might require some reader-gymnastics as there are so many characters, but let's just do it and enjoy it!
The Welkin by Lucy Kirkwood
Lucy Kirkwood is a young contemporary writer of some acclaim, and The Welkin was performed at The National in 2020. Just before .... During Covid I watched another of her plays, Mosquitoes, via NT at Home which I am sure I have mentioned in the past (https://www.ntathome.com/)
The Welkin
I was attracted to the play mainly because of Maxine Peake, who was in the NT production, and who I trust to only be in good plays! I do hope that you agree with this way of choosing plays!
The year is 1759 and the country awaits the anticipated arrival of Halley’s Comet. The daughter of Lady Wax has been murdered and the residents of this rural town are out for blood. Sally Poppy has been found guilty of the crime, along with her lover who has already been hanged. Sally’s journey to the noose is dependent on whether she is really pregnant, as she claims, or openly lying. If she is pregnant, she will be transported and her life will be saved. Sally’s fate lies in the hands of twelve women, gathered together to make a unanimous decision one way or the other. Some of the women have reasons for being part of the jury, others cannot wait until their duty is over. Their status, age, and class is varied; one is in the first flush of marriage, another is in her eighties. One of the women is barren, another has had twenty one children. Amidst their bickering and teasing, one woman understands the importance of their presence in the jury room. The midwife, Lizzy, knows that, despite the mob baying for blood outside the window, the twelve women have the chance to make an important, life-changing decision in a world governed by men. However, there is a devil in their midst and the women must wrestle with their consciences to come to a decision.
