Widows
Playwrights - Ariel Dorfman (with Tony Kushner)
Director - Anna Newell
Company - Dundee Rep Community Theatre
Venue - Dundee Rep www.dundeerep.co.uk
01382 223530
Date - 15 - 17 February 2001
Reviewer - Rachel Natanson
One of the Widows narrators refers to this story as a perverse
fairytale, and indeed it is just that: extremely haunting and emotional
with no happy ending either for the play's characters or for the real
life people it bases itself around.
Based on Dorfman's novel, also called Widows, the play is set
in Chile and deals with unjust arrests and subsequent disappearances
of people, in this case men, in an undemocratic regime. It is a highly
charged piece with the women's pain and anguish told in an unforgiving
yet at the same time compassionate manner.
The set is a startling change from Dundee Rep's often complex and magnificent
miniature worlds, but it suits the piece nonetheless; the bleakness
symbolic of the women's feelings, as well as, quite simply, fitting
the large cast on the stage without the space feeling crowded. It also
allows the full focus to rest on the action and the singing, a lot of
which is excellent.
The teaming up of the women's singing and drama groups with some of
the adult community theatre group is effective, and the play's original
music score helps to portray some of the strong emotions that might
not be communicated so well through dialogue. The mixture seems to be
just right: this is by no means a musical, the singing is there to help
along the drama and it performs its role wonderfully. The finale is
especially notable for its immense power: vocally, visually and emotionally.
The only thing that gives this piece away as being a community company
rather than a professional cast are the occasional line fluffs and,
rarer still, timing difficulties, but theses are in no way enough to
detract from the drama.
Overall, "Widows" is a challenge that Dundee Rep's community company
have pulled off with skill, grace and honesty. It is only a shame that
it is limited to such a short run, but I am looking forward to their
next project.
© Rachel Natanson 15 February 2001
