A Note on Yerma, 2018
“There are Yermas walking around in cities everywhere. London, Sydney, Berlin. I know these Yermas. That moment for women- family, friends, colleagues — where they say ‘I’ve spent my entire life making sure I’m not defined by my choices, by my gender, or by clichéd expectations of what I want to do with my life’ then suddenly biological questions start knocking.” Words of Simon Stone, Australian adapter and director of Lorca’s 1934 Spanish play, Yerma, which played to great success at the Young Vic Theatre in 2016.
Simon Stone’s rendition of Yerma is the most high tension live performance I’ve ever seen mainly due to the grinding contrasts of the play. The original play was Lorca’s take on a woman of 1930’s Spain who goes insane while failing to conceive a child in a society of intense expectations on maternity. Today, Stone’s contemporary adaptation demonstrates a clear message that dynamics in society may have updated, yet these pressures are still abound.
In Yerma’s setting of modern day London, the main character titled Her, played by pop star and dynamic actress Billie Piper, is a substantial journalist/blogger newly wed to successful Aussie husband, John, played by Brendan Cowell (The Life of Galileo). Her is empowered and charismatic, and has the support of charming husband John, but it is because of her own modern expectations that overwhelm her now compared to the societal pressures of 1930’s Yerma that were originally the main character’s enemy. Piper’s character ultimately dies pursuing a childbirth when she feels that in her circumstance, there is no viable explanation to why she shouldn’t be able to bear one. She is fed up with her biology.
This modern production of Yerma is a bit of storytelling that takes a grip on the audiences heart largely due to the acting performances. Billie Piper is on stage as Michael Billington (The Guardian) puts best, “breathtakingly uninhibited.” She is boomingly energetic, upbeat, and authentic even through these traumatic acts. In fact, the most refreshing aspect of the production was that the scenes really let the plot breathe and organically take shape. It was simplicity at it’s finest with rapid dialogue.
As Piper’s character’s sanity and life start to slip away from her, other characters still mirror her as the light that she truly is. She continues to demonstrate her intelligence, heart, and stays appealing to an audience that can’t help but sympathize through her downfall.
The story concentrates on a couple that is constantly breaking into heated disputes and has poor communication skills, but these drawn out scenes are magnetic to watch. The dialogue is nuanced and soulful, never getting drowned out by the yelling that takes place. While Piper’s character believes her husband loves her, she is not convinced that in this modern age of childbearing, they have done everything they could do, potentially being held back by him. She doesn’t really know where he stands as far as dedication, and their relationship deteriorates because of her honest passion. Finally Her’s mother puts it best when speaking to the husband, proposing, “Maybe you two just aren’t compatible” with a light suspicion to his loyalties
Director Simon Stone has made theatre and film all over the world. He is from Europe (Switzerland), grew up in Australia, and directs productions like Yerma, at the Young Vic in London. In his interview with The Guardian, the actor/director claims that he actively engages in perspectives from around the world. When making theatre and adapting classics like Yerma as well as Ibsen’s The Wild Duck, he says Australians view him as bringing the worst of “over the top” European theatre, while Germans and Austrians view his productions as being “too interested in reality” — that he has reduced theatre to HBO (He responds saying “if theatre could be half as good as HBO, we’d be hitting gold”). And when he is in Australia, he touches base with his roots. He says, “It lets me feel sane enough to continue to work all of the different cultures and languages I’m working on.” Yerma won Best Revival at the 2017 Olivier Awards as well as Billie Piper for Best Actress.