Review: LA VOISIN, VAULT Festival

La Voisin tells the story of Catherine Montvoisin, a midwife, fortuneteller, and, most controversially, a poisoner. Montvoisin, or as she is more commonly known, "La Voisin", was involved in The Affair of the Poisons, a scandal that occurred in the late 1600s in France. Over thirty people ended up being executed as a result, including some close to King Louis XIV, who feared for his own life.

In La Voisin, the titular character (though arguably not the main character), portrayed by Marine d'Aure, is seen to be cold and calculating, taking advantage of other women in order to get more money for herself. She is joined by Catherine Trianon, a fortune teller and associate, played by Clara Courty-Zanca. Sofia Morreale plays Marie Bosse, a poisoner also involved in the scandal. The only man in the play is Nicholas de la Reynie, the chief of the Paris police, a man who is in control of the meta-theatrical play that the characters seem to be trapped in. He is played with calculating cruelty by Alexandre Déwen.

Along with playing their main characters, each of the women plays other characters, creating a world that features many of those who were involved in the Affair of the Poisons including Marguerite Monvoisin, the daughter of La Voisin and La Dodée, a woman who made potions alongside Trianon and La Voisin.

The theatre is set up in an interesting manner, with audience members facing each other on benches on opposite sides of the aisle. One side is the stage, with a chair on each side and a portrait of Louis XIV on the wall. The other side of the audience is the soundboard, which the actors sometimes lean on for support during their performances.

Lighting designer Ruth Harvey does a beautiful job of contrasting the "play" and the conversations between the actors, switching between warmer, orange lights and colder, white lights depending on the situation. The sounds of the show, designed by Sam Tannenbaum, begin with dripping water and grow in intensity as the story unfolds, leading to some incredibly strong moments.

While there is very little actual poisoning and magic happening in this minimalistic show, there is a particularly dark scene in which a Black Mass, a Satanic ceremony, takes place; blood, sacrifices, and all. The scene manages to be both striking and effective without too much graphic content, using its minimalism to its advantage.

I appreciated the efforts of the actors to play multiple characters, especially Courty-Zanca in a scene of insanity as she frantically switched between playing three different women, but it at times became too much to follow. There were also some timing issues. Most of the show moves pretty quickly, but there is one particular scene with zero dialogue and very little payoff that could definitely be cut down while still having the same effect.

The way La Voisin is set in a metatheatrical world left me with quite a few questions. When and where was the "play" of La Voisin taking place? Was it the afterlife, a kind of Purgatory for those involved in The Affair of the Poisons? Why did Reynie have control over the others? How did they make the decision to put on this show for an audience they are seemingly aware of?

Ultimately, La Voisin, though a work in progress, is a fantastic prototype of what could be a truly incredible show. I was in awe of the acting abilities of all four of the performers, who are each given their moments to shine throughout. Writer Becca Chadder is able to weave together the individual stories of each character who has been brought into the story by the poison affair, giving each of them their own motivations while illustrating their connections to one another.

La Voisin ran at the VAULT Festival from 28 February to 5 March in the Pit at The Vaults

Photo Credit: VAULT Festival

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