Nance Turner chats about her debut play Jamless
When she isn’t ensuring Lion and Unicorn Theatre is providing its usual top quality programming and trying to keep it’s AD David Brady from going too wild with his latest madcap idea, Nance Turner has been busy writing her own play, Jamless. It’s a tale of two sisters who haven’t seen each other for five years, until…
Set in a dusty attic, Jamless is a story of working-class resilience, long-held grudges, and the messy beauty of rebuilding broken bond.
Being massive fans of everything that Lion and Unicorn do, we are confident Nance’s play is going to be a winner, so we wanted to get in early for a chat to find out a little more about her debut play.
Hi Nance, wonderful to chat when we’re not standing on the stairs of Lion and Unicorn! So, what can you tell us about Jamless, and what inspired you to write a story of two sisters from a working class background?
Thanks for having me So I’ve had this idea for a while, and I wanted to see if my own experiences could be put into a story I don’t actually have a sister, only brothers, but I felt family dynamics and the untold stories within families would be a good place to start.
There are so many things that happen behind closed doors, and I wanted to get back to that old kitchen sink drama type of play, where the characters and the story are the main focus, hence why I set it in the loft. That kind of claustrophobic atmosphere of having nowhere to go and having to face the things we don’t want to, and being surrounded by memories we have tried to hide. Some of the things are loosely based on the experiences of my mum and what she put up with, because she really had no chance to make those changes.
There’s a lot of talk about the lack of real working-class representation on stage, how important is it to ensure such characters aren’t just lazy caricatures?
It’s so very important, and making sure they are real women, as opposed to the usual portraits we see. I think writing from the knowledge and experience of being a working class 40+ woman who has lived and grown up in that environment, I hope I’ve managed to write these women with the care and intelligence they deserve, We all know these women, and you don’t need to be working class to see yourself in them, and I guess that is the point, that this isn’t about class, but making them relatable to any audience. But also, being a woman of a certain age, and having the “working class” and “women over 40” label is sometimes a hindrance, and the conversations about this need to change, as we shouldn’t be penalised or ashamed that this is where we come from or who we are. Putting two 40+ women at the centre of the story was my main focus and having them come from a working-class background wasn’t my main objective, it just so happened that that’s what my experience is, and it was easy to write about what I know.
A common theme that we hear a lot from Lion and Unicorn is “ordinary people, in extraordinary situations”, is this a philosophy you worked with for Jamless?
Kind of, I mean, I find everyone totally fascinating and everyone you meet has one of those stories. Sometimes ordinary people are just extraordinary because of who they are and what they have survived. I think there is an extraordinary situation in everyone’s life. But also, people make choices, and the choices that they make can take them down a certain path, which to some might be out of the ordinary. Ro is one of those characters, who made choices that might seem totally out of the norm, but for reasons, which make it all the more extraordinary to Ginny, who has lived such a normal-ish life. They couldn’t be more different to say they were brought up in the same house.
You’ve worked with Lion and Unicorn Theatre and Proforca for some time, what’s taken you so long to get your debut play out? Has David been working you too hard?
Haha, well, David does let me out occasionally, and I do love my job, it’s the best place to be, David is a fantastic human, and boss, incredibly supportive to everyone and a huge inspiration. The knowledge and help he gives are so appreciated, and I’ve learnt a lot from him. And he normally just says … Just go do it!
I think the answer to why has it taken so long is I was absolutely terrified of trying to write anything. I used to write articles and worked for a national magazine in my 20s, so I knew that I could if I wanted to, but, this is such a personal thing, a piece of you, essentially being put out there for other people to read, watch and review. That’s so terrifying, and I have so much respect for writers who do this all the time. Also, I think it was out of necessity, as I know if you want to tell the stories you feel are lacking, then just do it yourself The lack of stories with women over 40 are upsetting, it’s like we exist but only on the fringes, and, even if we are in a story, we are not THE story, so I just wanted to try and change the narrative, just a little.
You’re also performing in the play, what’s it like handing your work over to a director (Aisa Nurva-Culley), are you able to step back and let him take charge?
I feel super happy about handing over the play to Aisa. He’s been a good friend of mine for years, and knowing him and how he works, he was the perfect choice to take this on. He will have ideas that I would never think of, and I just want to concentrate on bringing Ginny to life, without any added stress. We will be in good hands, I’m very excited to see what direction he takes us.
Being part of Lion and Unicorn, you’ve seen plenty of shows pass through the doors, have you been taking notes about all the good things you’ve seen so you can borrow them for Jamless?
I’m always watching shows and thinking, wow, that’s such a brilliant way to do that, or how they said this, and I think as much as we need ideas, they need to be your own. I have seen some incredible stuff, and the ones that stick with me the most are the simple “this is my story”, the ones who keep it real and raw. They have the most impact, so if I was to borrow anything it would be, keeping it simple and having the words/story/relationships be the impactful moments.
Our thanks to Nance for taking the time to chat. You can catch Jamless when it plays at Lion and Unicorn Theatre from Tuesday 4 to Saturday 8 November.
