Lady Of Burma
Oxford Playhouse, Thu January 17th 2008 |
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When Director Richard Shannon met the Actor Liana Mau Tan Gould, he was struck by her resemblance to the Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. He decided he should write a play about the Nobel Peace Prize winner’s life and asked Ms Gould if she would work for him for nothing to help him research the subject. Amazingly she agreed and in 2006 The Lady of Burma was staged as a one-off fund-raiser. A run at London’s Riverside Studios followed and appropriately the Playhouse in Oxford was the venue for the first performance of this UK tour.
The Burma Campaign UK was enthusiastic about using the play to promote its message about democracy and human rights. Their hope is that it could also help the campaign to get Aung San Suu Kyi released from the detention she has endured for more than 11 years at the hands of Burma’s military regime. The play opens in complete silence with Gould lying crumpled on a bench in the hell-hole of Insein prison, her bleak cell furnished only with a stool and a bowl of dirty water. The presence of an uninvited insect, flitting around the naked light bulb, added a certain authenticity to the minimal props. From her prison cell the story of the Burmese people’s desperate struggle for freedom unfolds. So powerful was the description of the uprising in 1988 and its brutal suppression that the audience collectively held its breath. At certain points through the narrative, Gould ‘became’ other characters within the story, providing a welcome change of pace and adding a wry humour. But it was her compelling portrayal of the wraith-like heroine that was most moving. Of the anguish of her personal pain and losses; of the legacy of purpose inherited from the father who was assassinated when she was only two years old and of the selfless commitment to the cause which is her life. Shannon travelled to Burma and spoke to some of Suu Kyi’s closest associates, including Ko Aung, a student leader who was actively involved in the 1988 uprising. Indeed it was his words that Shannon used to describe this event, adding complete legitimacy to the script. As the play drew to a close there was not a sound from the packed theatre. The audience seemed almost stunned before erupting into appreciative applause. This particular performance featured a free post-show discussion with special guests. These turned out to be first Shannon, who spoke of the reasons he had written the play. He then introduced Ko Aung, who quietly and movingly told his own story of the unspeakable horrors he had experienced at first hand, and of the ongoing fight of the courageous Burmese people. He received a standing ovation. This evening took me way outside my ‘comfort zone’, but I was so glad I had the privilege to be there. Marian Dreier, 18/01/08 |
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