The Ballad of Maria Marten is a true crime story about the young daughter of a poor mole catcher, murdered in a barn by a ‘villainous squire’. Billed as a ‘thrilling retelling of a real-life murder mystery’. Well, whether or not a play where the murder victim appears in the opening scene as a corpse and tells you all about her murder can really be described as a mystery, is open to question. Thrilling is an apt description of this production though, writes Katie Kelly.
Showing in a week where the endless revelations brought about by the #metoo movement reached a new low as Prince Andrew, no less, settled the case made against him by Virginia Giuffre, it was hard not to be aware of the parallels in this sad tale of male power and female exploitation. What makes this retelling by Beth Flintoff so vivid and fresh is the complete focus on Maria herself and the women who surround her. The richness of her relationships with her friends and stepmother, who defies the usual stereotypes to be an entirely positive source of love and support, give this tragic tale depth, life and even laughter.
Women simply are the main event here. Even the male characters are played by women and seen from their perspective. Maria is not simply a victim but a fully rounded character. She is without question handed very poor cards in the game of life, unlike the men who abuse her and the one who ultimately kills her for his own convenience. She is poor, and loses her mother at a very young age. When a harvest fails and near starvation comes to the village, she is left with little choice about accepting the advances of the rich tenant farmer. But she is also vivacious, highly intelligent, able to read and full of dreams which seem tragically impossible; a fact brought into stark relief by the contrast between her options and that of the naïve Lady Cooke, who befriends her, with mixed results.
Elizabeth Crarer does a brilliant job of bringing Maria to life, from young girl, through young woman in love, to the harrowing final scenes of her complete breakdown and loss of herself. With similar versatility, Hanora Karmen plays both the stalwart, grounded village girl. then woman Sarah Stowe, and also Lady Cooke, switching between two utterly different characters with ease. Totally believable in both roles.
The staging of this production is similarly deserving of praise. The music and vocal performances are a wonderful thread weaving through and enhancing the storytelling and the costume changes were some of the most creative I have ever seen.
The run has finished at Wilton’s Hall but it’s worth following the company, Eastern Angles and Matthew Linley Creative Projects, to see where it goes next