Hen and Chickens Theatre 13 – 24 June. Reviewed by Claire Roderick
Writer/director AJ’s debut play tackles the issue of child marriage in the UK. At 14, Aisha travelled from her home in Dagenham to Nigeria to be married to a 51-year-old man in exchange for a large dowry. Now 17, Aisha (Laura Adebisi) tells the story of her life with her nameless husband.
Beginning with a poetically gruesome description of nightly rapes and abuse, the play doesn’t shy away from the brutality and viciousness of Aisha’s husband, with a torture scene that is particularly graphic, but completely justifiable in this narrative. Aisha calls her nameless husband her possessor, and talks matter-of-factly about how the man has stripped her of her identity, belongings and relationships. AJ has given Aisha an eloquent voice that conveys the fact that this is an educated modern girl trapped in this antiquated nightmare, and her attempts to liberate her mind through books is a lovely touch.
The play is strongest when Aisha is alone, or having flashbacks and imaginary conversations with her mother (Sabrina Richmond). The play would still be powerful, perhaps even more powerful with some characters and their dialogue cut out. When her husband (Ayo Oyelakin) is silent, or roaring wordlessly at her, the tension and danger is palpable, but his scenes with his obnoxious racist friend add nothing to the narrative and could be cut to create a tighter production. AJ may have wanted to flesh out the man to show what a pathetic little bully he is, but that really goes without saying and the scenes feel like filler. Also, Aisha’s case-worker’s sharing of her own experiences being groomed and abused by older men was a little incongruous. I understand that this is high profile in the public’s consciousness compared to the less spoken about issue of child marriages in the UK, and AJ might want to highlight this inequality but the whole speech just felt tagged on.
Laura Adebisi is unbelievably convincing as the 17-year-old, delivering a moving and fearless performance. The voice that the audience need, and want, to hear is Aisha’s and AJ should have more confidence in this fantastic character to carry the play without extraneous distractions. Some judicious trimming could turn this into a much more coherent and focussed play. Aisha is a brave debut from an exciting new writer, harrowing and heart-breaking, with a stunning performance from Laura Adebisi that deserves a wider audience.