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True Spirit Pathway Golden Goose Theatre
Fresh from a successful run at Edinburgh Fringe this August, True Spirit Pathway has made its way south to Golden Goose Theatre. Exploring the dark side of self-improvement and love cults, True Spirit Pathway is a crackling dark comedy about a woman sucked into a pernicious love scam.
We talk to performer and director Hasena Bibi and writer Richard Toye about bringing this story to the London stage.
Great to meet you both, shall we do introductions?
HB: I am Hasena Bibi, the performer and director of True Spirit Pathway, and with me is Richard Toye, the writer.
The play is a monodrama that blends tragedy with black comedy. It tells the story of a woman called Jodi, who is sucked into a love scam. She becomes convinced that a relative stranger, Danny, is her ‘true spirit match’. The more he tries to reject her, the more they encourage her to pursue him. Think Baby Reindeer from the stalker’s perspective.
We have presented True Spirit Pathway at the Edinburgh Fringe festival the last two summers. We are excited to be bringing it to London for the first time, to The Golden Goose Theatre from 11th September to 14th September.
What was the inspiration behind the show?
RT: The play is based on a genuine cult called Twin Flames Universe, which has been heavily covered in the media and has even been the theme of a couple of documentaries. I took that idea and gave it a dramatically different twist by exploring it from the perspective of someone who was sucked in.
I wanted to explore this area after noticing – especially during the pandemic but also at other times – that people I like and respect were being persuaded to adopt some extremely strange beliefs. There are more cults around you than you would think.
HB: Yes, there are! I know a couple of people who have been in similar positions to my character Jodie, and I’ve heard about more. It’s not just Twin Flames, there are so many ways that people are being manipulated, especially via these online movements. It’s not talked about enough.
What was it that drew you to this project, Hasena?
HB: It was exactly that – it’s telling an important and little-heard story about ‘new-thought’. The play is a commentary on the lightness with which ‘self-improvement’ is sold, and the dark side behind this: the moral obligation to ‘live your best life’ and the con artistry involved in monetising this. It puts those ideas on the table.
It’s a challenging role and that’s also one of the things that drew me to it. I felt completely out of my depth the first time I read it. And the second, third, fourth time… [Laughs] But I felt an impulse immediately, and I knew I had to do it, no matter what it took. I normally need some time to re-centre myself after a run. To feel like myself again.
What is it about your character Jodi that you most enjoy?
HB: She is a person of contrasts – she is smart and naive, broken but strong, vulnerable and a fighter. And ultimately she is seeking love and connection, and that makes her an everyday woman.
What do you hope audiences think about her?
HB: I want audiences to see bits of themselves in her. To identify with her and understand why she takes the actions she does. [Laughing] And I want would-be cult leaders to see her as someone not to mess with.
How long have you been working on this play, Richard? Tell us about the process.
RT: I first started working on the play in 2022, and I wrote it relatively quickly. I’ve come to playwriting in the past few years after spending most of my career writing history books. The process is very different – more collaborative and there’s the whole production side of things to negotiate. I wanted to write a play that could be performed by one person, potentially in their living room, with no or very few props. Complex setups require more actors, which means more money, making it considerably more difficult.
The key challenge I faced in writing the play was taking a story that evolves chronologically and then having the central character tell that story in a way that reveals different parts to the audience at different moments, not in the order in which they actually happen. Structuring that is quite complicated, but it’s satisfying when you succeed in making it work.
Was there a moment during the production process that felt magical or transformative?
HB: Magic happened at the oddest moments – 2am when no one was around. The process of directing yourself can be strange. I spent a lot of time alone, filming myself and watching through the footage.
It felt like the staging, for the most part, was set quite early on. And then for months, we just tested different ideas and tweaks. Some crazy, but it was great to just play and explore. All of that feeds into the final show. The Fringe was a great space for this. I would say 80% was probably set in 3 weeks, and 20% came from months of play and exploration.
Is the version coming to the Golden Goose Theatre how you originally envisioned it or has it changed drastically since you first put pen to paper?
RT: The version coming to the Golden Goose is pretty much how I originally imagined the play, although it has necessarily been shortened, and there are more visual and dramatic elements. I wanted to be sure that it wasn’t just a person sitting on stage talking, so I gave Jodi physical actions and things to do. But once the script left my hands, it took on new dimensions.
HB: Yeah, we have some props now! One-actor stage plays do come with a huge challenge. It’s tricky to keep the audience engaged and entertained. But I think we found the tricks that work for us.
RT: Yes, I’m very satisfied with the result.
Thanks to Hasena and Richard for finding the time to chat.
True Spirit Pathway will play at the Golden Goose Theatre between 11th and 14th September. Further information and tickets available here.
