Stream: Sophia
By Frances Poet. Pitlochry Festival Theatre and Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh.
Sophia tells the story of Sophia Jex-Blake, a formidable woman who battled for a woman's right to a medical education and license and who went on to become the first practising female doctor in Scotland. In 1869 Blake applied for admission to the Medical Faculty of the University of Edinburgh, only for her application to be rejected on the grounds that the University could not make the necessary arrangements "in the interest of one lady". Poet’s inspiring new play tells the story of Blake’s campaign and the struggles for her and her fellow women to secure the right to a medical education.
Having taken a course in Women’s Studies as part of my degree at UEA I was naturally eager to listen and review. The experience was both uplifting and frustrating. Sound Stage audio- digital theatre platform certainly create a superb audio experience and the 90 minutes flew by. Hopefully, this play will make it to live theatre in the future. Skipping back and forwards in time can be problematic to a listener and at times I must admit I lost track despite the impassioned delivery of the actors. It certainly is an inspiring story and one which young women today should know. The so-called struggles of the snowflake generation are small compared with the fight these women experienced in the past. The inequities of the examinations and the downright manipulation by the male authorities at the time.
Along with the logistical struggle and the stubborn refusal to give up, the story of Sophia also tells us something of her personal life and the women who were involved with her both professionally and romantically. The inevitable sisterhood that grows from a shared desire to achieve.
Amongst a strong cast Madeleine Worrall who played Sophia Jex-Blake, had just the right infuriating stubbornness in her delivery and Natalie Grady (Ursula DuPre) balanced her performance well. At times, the listener was in danger of confusing the other female characters and a mix of dark and light voices would have been better. Direction by Janys Chambers was smooth and told her story with commitment. The sound recording with background effects and musical interludes created the sense of the period. Sometimes the delivery sounded ‘modern woman’ and I suspect that was a director’s choice. Being picky, I shuddered at the lack of distinction between the clear and dark ‘L’ resulting in some words sounding ‘childlike’. This is commonplace on radio and television now so it would only irritate those listeners who like ‘old school ‘clear speech.
Frances Poet has given us an exciting new work bringing a lesser-known women’s story to the stage. I hope wider audiences will be able to experience it ‘live’ in the future.
