From Crete in 1944 to a sensational murder trial – drama in Highgate
Two new shows to see in May
The little-known story of the plight of the Jewish community in Crete is revealed in Long After the Labyrinth. The play is set in 1944, on the Greek island of Crete, and follows the life of Rena Depas who, having watched helplessly as her family are rounded up and loaded onto trucks, embarks upon a labyrinthine quest to find peace in the wake of violence.
The two-hour long play is produced husband-and-wife team Jonathan D’Young and Jennie Dunne. who together run NMT Automatics theatre company, which takes themes of peace and mythical source material to create stunning new work. In Long After the Labyrinth the mythological reference is the minotaur – the half-man, half-bull, creature who lived in the labyrinth in Crete.
“The events of October 7 have greatly influenced this work.” says Jonathan. “As a Jew, in the wake of these events, the quest for peace becomes even more urgent. All our previous theatre work has been about peace – about learning to find peace in the wake of violence. If we are to find peace and move forward in the world, we have to break the cycle of violence. For this play we chose the minotaur as the manifestation of trauma.”
The show is NMT’s second collaboration and co-production with Professor Alice König’s Ancient Studies Peace Network at St Andrews University. It is supported by The Society for Classical Studies, East London & Essex Liberal Synagogue, JW3, and Etz Hayyim Synagogue, Crete. A cast of four play more than 20 characters.
Long after the Labyrinth is at on Sunday 3 May at Upstairs At The Gatehouse.
You have a little longer to catch a tale of lust, lies and murder in a play based on the true story of the murder trial of Edith Thompson and her young lover Freddy Bywaters. The couple’s trial in 1922 is brought to life in Entertaining Murder, a musical about the murder trial that was a sensation, and cause célèbre, of the 1920s. People queued for days to get tickets to the Old Bailey to find out if Edith and her lover really did collude to kill her husband.
The story is told through the eyes of Edith’s sister Avis, played by two popular Jewish actresses Sue Kelvin playing Avis later in life and Dora Gee taking on the role of the younger Avis.
Entertaining Murder is at Upstairs at the Gatehouse until 10 May.
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