a feral scream of injustice
Written and performed by Emily Woof, and directed by Hamish McColl, “Revolver” tells the story of three women, united by a common theme.
Jane, an ex-teacher, and ex-wife, is a new TV researcher for a documentary about girl fandoms, hoping to find a story amongst her mother Helen’s belongings from 60’s Beatlemania. Through movement and snippets of “Revolver”, she segues into 14yr old Helen, coming down from the North East to live with Nana Mary. She narrates her frequent and increasingly unhinged letters to John Lennon, about how they’ll meet at the airport, and the delusions that follow. She’s introduced to SCUM – Valerie Solanas’ feminist manifesto pamphlet, calling for the extinction of men. Stark and uncompromising, New Jersey-born Valerie moves to New York, where Andy Warhol insults her and rips off her work, so she takes her revenge. Valerie’s story mirror’s Jane’s, where her boss has ripped off her documentary idea, and as she discovers more about her mother’s story through heart-breaking letters about a brutal assault, her own revolver-based revenge comes to pass.
The generations of women hurt at the hands of men, compiling into a feral explosion of feminist rage, including a blistering twist of Cleopatra’s “His legs bestrid the ocean” quote from Shakespeare’s Anthony and Cleopatra, where Jane retakes her power, and her mother’s story, to shattering effect. .
Emily embodies each of her characters in a distinctive voice and manner, often with nothing more than a swirl of fabric or accessory to jump between them. The subject matter is dark, and Helen’s plea about her girlhood is particularly poignant, but we also have moments punctuated with humour, to lighten the turmoil. There’s accompanying multimedia projected behind Emily to accompany the story – some visuals are typical, such as the Beatlemania girls screaming for their heroes, with others, particularly with the Valerie storyline, are louder, more discordant (particularly when accompanied by a loud hailer to rally to her cause), leaving an unsettling feeling behind.
“Revolver” is a thought-provoking study of pop-culture and the humans behind the stories – the obsession, the love, the violence of the three women combine into an extraordinary web of emotion, which will linger in the mind of those watching for days to come. .
Revolver runs to 24 August, at 14:20 at Pleasance Courtyard. Tickets can be bought from: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/revolver