Review: Brave Bettie, Half Moon Theatre

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: if I see another Anansi the Spider show for children, I’ll bang my head against a wall. Well, finally – step aside Anansi, there’s a new African superhero on the block, and a great one at that! Meet Paida Moyo (Abena Adoma), a brave, bold yet brilliantly sensitive eco-warrior. She stars in Brave Bettie, a brand new play for children ages 3-8 years from Tatenda Naomi Matsvai.

Even before the show proper begins, the young audience are made part of a conversation about the environment, invited to talk about the creatures of the forest and keen to call out their favourites. They’re excited to banter with Adoma’s fabulously charismatic hero, who is based on a Zimbabwean ancestral spirit.

When timid Bettie (Joanna Nsianguana) learns that her local woodland is in danger, who better to help than the fearless champion she’s read about in legends, and who has survived everything – including stampeding elephants! Bettie must find the courage to save the woods, so together they undertake a challenging mission to the ancient oak at the heart of the forest, where friendship is forged and ancient magic helps save the day.

This is a playful, active adventure that embraces the natural world and is full of gentle laughter and brilliant characterisation. Bettie and Paida Moyo are great foils for each other, each bringing their own strengths and vulnerabilities, and this plays out well in the excellent rapport between the two actors. The story delivers themes of friendship, belief in yourself, resilience, and awareness that even the most confident people have vulnerability and need help. We see the characters owning their personal weaknesses and learning to take help from others in order to grow as individuals. As scenes change, they reimagine elements from an inventively flexible set (Bolu Dairo), working together and showing themselves to be active parts of a changing environment.

Matsvai writes beautifully and lyrically to embrace African heritage and give it a magical place in a modern world, connecting distant times and places. Unfamiliar language blends in, encouraging the audience to pay attention – to think differently, which in turn creates a space where it’s possible to reimagine our interaction with the natural world. Cheerful meetings with cute creatures such as a hedgehog and a beaver show the possibilities of listening to nature. But their writing also includes the understated yet powerful truth that non-Western tradition is under-acknowledged when it comes to reconsidering our relationship with the lands and creatures we co-exist with. It’s an excitingly refreshing perspective.

The show is at its best when it leans into the mystical, magical moments, blending atmospheric, twinkling lighting (Emily Walls) withthrillingly engaging music and sound design (Axel Kacoutié). And without being explicitly told to, the children in the audience found their own opportunities to join in naturally with the songs, which are performed beautifully by Adoma and Nsianguana.

There are moments in the production that feel a little raw and unfinished. Towards the end it’s overly wordy when explaining the oak’s underground connections, and the ending feels unsure – it’s unclear what Bettie’s closing wish actually is. But it’s early days for this show, and there’s plenty of potential to become polished and perfected moving forward.

Brave Bettie is a really refreshing take on the ancient African legend, bringing a new superhero into our modern world and showing how the knowledge of the ancestors can be useful as well as entertaining. As the lights came up, the children next to me were asking when they’d get to see the next episode! I will be there for sure!

A Half Moon and Z-arts co-production
Written by Tatenda Naomi Matsvai
Direction by Abigail Kelly
Design by Bolu Dairo
Composition and sound design by Axel Kacoutié
Lighting design and production management by Emily Walls
Technical stage management and assistant direction by Dynzell Muguti

Brave Bettie is aimed at ages 3-8 years and plays at Half Moon Theatre until Tuesday 10 February before touring.