Summary:

Rating: ★★★★★

Running Dates: Wednesday 16th October - Saturday 19th October 2024

Where to see it: Tobacco Factory Theatres (and various venues across the UK)

Duration: 2 hours and 10 minutes (inc. interval)

Keywords: Real Life Story, Modern Slavery

Review

I felt part of the story and I know I was interrogating myself about the history, or better, modern world circumstances that allow what was being played in front of my eyes to actually take place.

This outstanding piece of theatre, directed by Caroline Clegg, tells us the real life story of Mende Nazer. She is a Sudanese woman who experienced the atrocities of modern slavery, being kidnapped from her family and her village in the Nuba mountains when she was really young.

The scene is very cleverly thought to make you feel embedded in Sudanese culture. The Tobacco Factory Theatre set up allows actors to make their way in from different angles depending on the scene. 

Initially, we experience Mende’s family life, with loving moments of singing and playing, wrestling as they do in her culture - Mende was to become a doctor and she loved her cat. One night, the Muhjahidin invade her home and take her away to be enslaved in a family in Sudan. 

The depiction of the journey to this destination unknown to Mende was a preview of the horrible stories Mende would be able to tell later, as she is victim of sexual abuse by the Muhjahidin before being abandoned for 7 years in the home of a spiteful “master” - masterfully played, by the way, by Sara Faraj.

Mende is portrayed by Yolande Ovide - her real tears, expression, masterful acting in a theatrical space so close to the audience captured me immediately. I felt part of the story and I know I was interrogating myself about the history, or better, modern world circumstances that allow what was being played in front of my eyes to actually take place. 

Many people help Mende along the way before turning their back to her once they get what they need. This changes when she reaches London, where she is sent to “work”. There, she establishes real human connections and manages to escape - we are then taken on a journey to her first rejected asylum request, which eventually is reverted so that she can become a refugee in the United Kingdom. 

There were no moments where I did not feel part of that story, in a way that made me feel all the spite, guilt, pain, horror that was so well taken to the stage. 

I recommend going to experience this real life story at the Tobacco Factory before it takes stage in Prescott and then London. There is a lot to learn about the current circumstances affecting Sudan as the cast goes through a final recount of the conflicts taking place in Mende’s country.

Standout Quote or Moment: The initial portrayals of Sudanese culture are poignant and were an important moment to set out the context of the play and understand all that Mende was to lose in her journey. The sentence: They can take your name, but not your spirit! also stayed with me until after leaving the theatre.

See If:  It is Black History Month and the only way to support the cause of this month, reclaiming narratives, is by showing up to support pieces of work such as this one.

Last Impression: Deeply moving, informative and factual, a window into some realities that are taking place so far from us but really not that far that we can turn a blind eye.

If you want to help, here is the link to the Mende Nazer Foundation https://gofund.me/52197bc3. 100% of funds raised will be used to help Mende's community.

To get tickets for the show click here

We were kindly gifted these tickets in exchange for a review.

Written by Angela Masella

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