“Nine Parts of Desire”
Written by Heather Raffo.
Directed by Lillette Dubey.
NCPA, Experimental Theatre,
11 October 2013.
Heather Raffo’s “Nine Parts
of Desire” is a meditation on “the pity of war” and its effects on the lives of
ordinary people, specifically Iraqi women, during and between the two Gulf
conflicts and subsequent occupation.
The play was apparently inspired by the painting of a
nude woman clinging to a barren tree; and it does indeed seem like a
portrait-gallery of diverse female characters spanning generations, ideologies,
backgrounds, even continents; but sharing the common “spine” of suffering and
surviving the most severe physical and emotional conditions.
Layla the painter is central to this group, setting
the scene and returning later to offer further exposition and comment. So, to a
lesser extent, is the exiled intellectual Huda, nursing her Scotch and providing
historical perspective. But it is the image of Umm-Ghada, the black-clad mother
of a girl who died when the Americans mistakenly bombed a civilian air-raid
shelter, that encapsulates the play’s essence in her taciturn, numbed (and
numbing) narration of the horror of what happened.
However, for all its passion, the play seems a little
too episodic in its many vignettes, lacking development towards a climax.
Lillette Dubey’s direction does not try to induce one; and thus the end does
seem somewhat anticlimactic. Even so, the drama flows at even pace, allowing
the script to “breathe”, never flagging tension or interest; hard-hitting,
humorous, compassionate and angry in turn, with movement and tempo-rhythm to
match.
Much of the credit goes to Ira Dubey, the sole
performer onstage, who gives something of a tour
de force in embodying all these women. Her sheer concentration, energy and range,
both expressive and emotional, allow her to paint vividly-etched characters,
aided only by simple costume-changes. A minor drawback would perhaps be her
near-constant reliance on the lower half of her vocal compass, with the result
that some of the women sound a little alike. Although the Iraqi accent tends to
vary, sometimes coming dangerously close to Russian. Even so, it is a vital, brave,
searing performance.
The production is endowed with an extraordinarily
communicative set, designed by Bhola Sharma and Lillette Dubey. This
multi-layered mise-en-scène, aided by
Mr. Sharma’s evocative lighting, conjures a desolate, tragic tapestry, both
internal and actual.
Similarly, Gandhaar Sangoram’s sound-design (with help
from Lillette and Ira Dubey) strikes all the right notes (literally) in
supporting and commenting on the action. For example, the soft sound of a
crying infant underlaying the Umm-Ghada sequence is utterly, appropriately
chilling.
One wishes the audience (at least at the NCPA) would
not clap or talk after each story…or worse, during a monologue. It breaks one’s
concentration and undoubtedly that of the actor onstage, also fracturing the
cumulative build-up of tension and emotion.
“Nine Parts of Desire” is not for the squeamish, as
made obvious by the involuntary gasps of horror heard from the audience during
the performance. However, in its unflinching, unromanticised look at the
traumas of war and oppression; and in its sheer humanity, the play offers a
powerfully cathartic and intense experience.
Addendum:
On watching the play again, I was struck by the improvement in performance. The vagaries in accent were gone; and the voice was now used to its fullest range and extent. Emotionally too, the interpretation had deepened. In Ira's own words, her performance is now "nicely cooked"!
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