Review: A SUDDEN VIOLENT BURST OF RAIN, Gate Theatre

Elif is an undocumented immigrant working as a shepherdess on a island (unnamed, but I felt Lampedusa was a possibility). She works hard, but worries about her perilous status, which becomes more dangerous still when her employer's son fathers her child and then abandons her. She travels to the capital where she faces the bureaucracy of a hostile administration and the challenge of scratching the requirements of living for herself and her daughter, while trying to secure their status and, in consequence, the protection of the king.

Award-winning playwright, Sami Ibrahim, has written a tale for our times that borrows from Franz Kafka's The Castle, from magical realism and from Greek myths to make personal such abstract concepts as 'hostile environment' and 'right to work'. In that aim, he succeeds, but the play is less successful in its structure and plotting.

Much of the 70 minute drama comprises narration by Elif, her daughter and other characters, so events are reported rather than acted, emotions are described rather than revealed. Too often the play feels like a reading of a short story, one done with passion and commitment, but lacking a theatrical essence to underpin the staging.

The story's arc is predictable: Elif's pregnancy; her abandonment; her exploitation as a worker; the impenetrable rules; her daughter's rebellious nature. There is little in the plot that surprises, that provides nuance, that steps aside from its didactic thrust to present more multi-faceted characters.

Sara Hazemi gives Elif a feisty resourcefulness and intelligence that allows her to navigate the system sufficiently to survive and also vests her with additional magical powers. It's tricky sometimes to believe that a person so bright, so motivated, so dedicated to her daughter's well-being could not make more of her situation, even under the grim conditions of an authoritarian state over the course of two decades.

Princess Khumalo, as Elif's daughter Lily and in other parts, brings some humour to her work and finds pathos when Lily understands more about the compromises Elif has been forced to make in order to survive. Samuel Tracy does what he can, but male roles are little more than ciphers in this story.

Director, Yasmin Hafesji, makes good use of the confined performing space and a range of props, but she has her actors shout at pneumatic drill volume at times in a house full of hard surfaces - she could trust her audiences to catch the strength of emotions without such an assault on the ears. such an approach also lends a jarring soap opera vibe to a rather high-minded concept.

The Gate Theatre's move to Camden will, no doubt, open more opportunities as time passes, but this cri-de-coeur may have its heart in the right place and resonate with its audience, but its flaws as a drama detract from its power.

A Sudden Violent Burst Of Rain is at The Gate Theatre until 5 November

Photo Credit: Craig Fuller

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