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Summerhall – Anatomy Lecture Theatre
The spine-chilling drama of a woman whose job requires her to embalm the man who raped her. Summary
Rating
Excellent
Alexandra Donnachie’s knack for visceral theatre was already remarkable in 2018, when she visited Edinburgh with her heartwarming autobiographical work, 3 Years, 1 Week and a Lemon Drizzle, about anorexia and the power of sisterhood. Five years have passed, and her talent has blossomed into a flourishing career.
Her current one-woman play, When We Died, (which she also performs) revolves around Rachel, an embalmer who’s been appointed to work on the body of the man who raped her eleven months earlier. A devoted family man on the surface, he has had a fatal accident and Rachel is called to get him ready for his wife and children to say the final goodbye. Could this possibly be a good time to let his wife know what sort of man he actually was?
The way past and present are threaded together in Rachel’s account are twice disturbing. We are next to her as she meticulously describes the embalming process in its smallest detail, but we are also with her as she relives – using the present tense – the circumstances that lead to her assault. His name is never mentioned, to illustrate that on this occasion Rachel is in control of the narrative.
Meanwhile, a soundtrack with lively percussions is in stark dissonance with what is being said, as if wanting to suggest that this story will have a positive ending. Throughout the play, we get the same lingering hint of denial from the victim’s faint smile. As if she wanted to convince us that this isn’t a big deal, or to believe that he never existed and never hurt her. Her calmness and apparent acceptance are unsettling.
Donnachie inhabits the role with extreme confidence, exuding passion for her job whilst also holding back on the rage that we would want her to feel. Giving such an authentic portrayal of the embalming process must have required extensive research and makes her carefully constructed script stand out even more. Despite being a work of fiction, there is not an instance in this hour-long drama that could undermine its credibility. It has a powerful cathartic symbolism, whilst never entirely answering the question of whether seeing a rapist dead can bring any significant closure to their victim.
Written by: Alexandra Donnachie
Directed by: Andy Routledge
Produced by: Carbon Theatre
When We Died plays at EdFringe 2023 until 27 August, 7:40pm at Summerhall. Further information and bookings here.
