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Excellent performances and dark humour enable a powerful exploration of the impact of an eating disorder.Summary
Rating
Excellent
Arcola Theatre brings us the premiere of the 2023 Papatango New Writing Prize winner from Laura Waldren, Some Demon. Sam (Hannah Saxby), who has just turned 18 and is preparing to start university in a few weeks, is admitted to a residential adult eating disorder unit. Some of the women are there voluntarily (like Sam), while others have been sectioned. At the facility, she meets other residents: the older and jaded Zoe (Sirine Saba), who has been here many times before, Mara (Leah Brotherhead), who is struggling to hold herself together, and Nazia (Witney White) who is desperate to return to her partner. The understaffed and underfunded facility leaves them in the care of just two key nurses, Leanne (Amy Beth Hayes) and Mike (Joshua James).
As Sam adapts to the routines and regulations of the facility, we learn about the illnesses which brings these women here. Each is fighting her own ‘demon’, and so are the nurses. The staff are not villains nor bad guys; they are doing their best within a system that would struggle to manage such diseases, such demons, even with full funding and support. They tread a fine line – wanting the best for their patients but sometimes unable to get through, unable to help and dealing with their own complications, professional or personal.
The cast deliver strong performances throughout, using constant body language to support the script. Legs tap nervously, chairs are leaned back in, patients pace frantically. The action focuses primarily on Sam and Zoe and their illnesses, while most of the story involving Nazia and Mara plays out off-stage. Both women rise to the roles. Saba convincingly shows Zoe’s jaded cynicism resulting from repeated attempts at the programme, as well as the long-term impact her demons have had on her. Saxby begins with a confident, even cocky, demeanour that gradually shifts to desperation as Sam struggles, showing how hope can so easily become despair and illness can make a mockery of plans and good intentions.
Director George Turvey (also Artistic Director of Papatango) keeps a long play moving nicely, adeptly handling scenes that rapidly shift in tone as routine goes out the window and conflict breaks out. Waldren’s script skilfully navigates a tightrope, balancing a very heavy subject with darkly comedic moments that help to keep the audience engaged. The play doesn’t shy away from the brutal realities of eating disorders, offering at times gritty descriptions of their physical and mental toll. The road to recovery is a long, arduous one, fraught with setbacks and relapses. Sometimes, despite valiant efforts, people can remain trapped in a cycle of treatment then relapse and treatment then relapse.
Some Demon unflinchingly portrays the brutal reality of eating disorders: there’s no magic bullet and no quick fix. It does this with an accomplished cast and creative team, and a raw honesty, which allows the experience to connect and resonate throughout those watching. As the play unfolds you can almost feel the way it is impacting on different people in the audience – a testament to the production’s power.
Written by: Laura Waldren
Directed by: George Turvey
Produced by Chris Foxon for Papatango Theatre Company
Set and Costume Design by: Anisha Fields
You can hear more about this show in our recent interview with Leah Brotherhead here.
Some Demon plays at Arcola Theatre until 6 July. Further information and tickets can be found here.
