This April, acclaimed theatre-maker Megan Jones, Theatre Works, and Machination Theatre Ensemble bring an emotionally resonant new work to the Theatre Works stage. An inventive reimagining of the Cinderella story, told from the perspective of the stepmother, here we meet Mara; a spirited, ambitious girl desperate to escape her prescribed destiny and transcend her mother’s fate.
For director Jones, the initial compelling attraction to participate in the piece was to work with the two performers bringing it to life, musician/composer Ania Reynolds and actor Aurora Kurth.
Jones also loves fairytales and has always been interested in the retelling of a story from a different perspective.
“I liked the creative challenge of trying to stage a one person show which required endless transformation. I prefer working with scripts that are non-naturalistic that allow transformation of character, transformation of place and invite creative solutions to theatrical problems.
Currently, through social media, it’s implied that you can create whatever life you want and if you don’t achieve it, it’s somehow your fault. I believe this creates great sadness and despair especially in young people. As an older person, I know that sometimes life, no matter how hard you work or plan, doesn’t always work out in your favour. I want people to remember through watching Mara, that we need to be kind to people who inherit a difficult life script.”
By examining a family that won’t blend and a stepdaughter who will never love her, it exposes how women are punished for wanting more than what society allows. So, the work explores the challenges of blended families and the complexity of the role of ‘the stepmother’.
How someone faced with relentless challenges pivots and reinvents themselves. These observations shaped the central question of the play: what happens when a character traditionally defined as a villain is given context, voice, and agency?
More broadly, says Jones, the work began to interrogate how cultural narratives influence behaviour, and how inherited stories continue to shape contemporary family dynamics.
Jones acknowledges there are more and more blended families and not many platforms to explore the emotional complexities of being a stepparent or stepchild.
“Many adolescents feel isolated and abandoned in blended family situations and many adults are unsure of how to navigate this role. We are all just trying to make our way and it’s important to see both sides of any dynamic and interpersonal situation. I hope people who see Mara will be more open to honest vulnerable discussion and debate with their own families which will bring them closer together and potentially resolve some unanswered questions.”
The work draws on Brechtian storytelling, Poor Theatre, traditions, contemporary fairytale, and physical theatre. While Brecht’s Epic Theatre is a form of theatrical movement that is not for everyone, Jones says Brecht is often misunderstood.
“Historically, plays were a slice of life. Audiences were meant to believe when they went to the theatre that they were seeing real people do real things in real time. Brecht felt that by over identifying with reality, it impacted your ability to be objective about issues. He wanted theatre to educate as well as allow them to feel. He challenged a lot of the traditional conventions of theatre by allowing the actors to speak to the audience directly by having symbolic props and costumes instead of replicas of reality. He wanted to be conscious of the fact that we are in the theatre and able to reflect on the issues and learn from them.”
Jones feels that the joy of Brecht is it allows a more poetic and symbolic interpretation and solution to the staging of a traditional work. “Images can have more impact than words, combining them is very powerful. What people can expect from Mara is a shared transformation of characters, places and objects that create an exciting, surprising theatrical landscape. There will be an intimate connection between the audience, the actor, the singer and the story.”
The show will be brought to life by critically acclaimed singer/actor Kurth who will be performing ten characters, across gender, age and class. Music and sound design for the production will be created by renowned musician Reynolds.
So clearly music is central to the telling of Mara’s story, it helps define place, share inner emotional states, and depict character, explains Jones.
“There are six original songs by Ania Reynolds which offer social commentary and add insight into the emotional experiences related to the themes of the play. Ania has also composed original music to underscore the narrative.
Live music brings fantastic energy to the space; it’s more immersive and richer experience for the audience. Because it’s live it means we can see music a lot more throughout the play to help highlight particular moments and expand the audience’s experience.
It began with the songs, we needed a composer and player and we were lucky enough to get Ania who is exceptional, so we maximised the opportunity to utilise her skills through the whole piece.”
An intimate cast, Jones says she has loved working with one actor and one musician, sating here is so much more opportunity to collaborate creatively and utilise their skills in a production. “The advantage of a small cast is that you can refine things much more quickly, take more risks and detail the performance in the rehearsal.
It’s challenging to stage a one person show when there are so many locations and characters, but there’s growth and joy in problem solving those creative challenges.”
As a creative Jones, who is a regionally based actor and theatre and circus director, likes to share stories that can make a difference and will open an audience’s heart and eyes to experiences that they may not have encountered. “I am drawn to stories of those who have suffered injustice and I hope through sharing their humanity we can create a more passionate and tolerant community. I like to stage stories about people trapped in difficult lives and explore how they can navigate their way out to a better situation. I believe the theatre can educate and bring hope.”
Exploring the emotional terrain of blended families and the complex bonds between parents and children, Mara is set in a crumbling home haunted by broken promises.
Says Jones, “It’s a unique theatre experience full of love, rage, hope and despair. It has original songs and a performance score composed by Ania Reynolds. It’s full of surprises; we see one person transforming into 10 characters, the world also features film, animation, and puppetry.”
April 22 – May 2
