Leeds Playhouse – until 23 November 2019
Reviewed By Dawn Smallwood
3***
It’s True, It’s True, It’s True is currently playing at the Leeds Playhouse on the last stop of their tour. Breach’s award winning production returns to Bramall Rock Void’s intimate stage and retells the 1612 trial of Agostino Tassi for the rape of Artemisia Gentileschi, a baroque painter.
Ellice Stevens, Kathryn Bond and Sophie Steer star in this short one act play which is based on surviving court transcripts of the seven-month trail which had caught the attention of Renaissance Rome. This contemporary play is bold, daring, direct and dramatic which captures and grips the attention of the audience. The staging works well though a bit cluttered at times for retelling this dramatic documentary.
Breach theatre takes pride in their reworking of this production and ensures the darker messages, not usually encouraged, are just as relevant today than they were in the 17th Century. This is targeted for an adult audience, nudity being part of the show, and the themes and linked messages could not be any clearer. Breach theatre caringly supports local charities for those who have been a victim of rape or sexual violence.
The performance from Stevens (Artemisia) is very outstanding and one could not hear a pin drop as the whole audience is fixated to her powerful, emotive and poignant portrayal of the Baroque painter testifying as the victim and explicitly telling what exactly happened. As well as exploring sexual violence It’s True, It’s True, It’s True explores the role of women particularly in the patriarchal culture at the time and how the horrific experiences empowered Artemisia to become one of the most successful painter of her time. Though she felt revengefully expressed her experiences in the form of art, no doubt this was a saviour for her. Though the play is dark, hope and light are shared.
With an eclectic blend of modern music and modern language, under the direction of Billy Barrett and dramaturgic support from Dorothy Allen Pickard, this is an interesting and tense retelling of the court trial with the use of verbatim materials.