The House Behind the Lines at the HUB in Leeds.
During the First World War, soldiers were often preached to about the virtues of abstinence and keeping clean, yet were quietly encouraged to visit brothels throughout their service. Buglight’s The House Behind the Lines is told from the perspective of the prostitutes providing the so-called ‘soldier’s comforts’. As the narrative develops, events in their personal lives clash with their newfound pseudo-independence.
Under Ruth Carney’s smooth direction, the cast and creatives have made a refreshingly simple piece of theatre that fulfils the company’s ethos to bring to life the told and the untold in accessible ways.
Stripping things back to basics, Richard Galloway and Jack Alexander, who both play soldiers in the piece, also perform their own compositions. Consisting of nothing more than simple harmonies, accompanied by an unplugged guitar and ukulele, the two performers fashion together a campfire-esque atmosphere that fills the theatre. Against the backdrop of Kevin Jenkins’ clever set design, which comes in the form of a bunker/trench hybrid, there’s definitely a no-nonsense vibe present. Chris Hanlon completes the scenography with strokes of lighting from a warm, energised palette of washes that perfectly convey the tone and mood of each scene.
There is also some lovely characterisation from the three female performers. Julie Higginson is hardened and icy as the brothel’s Madame, while Keeley Lane is Paulette, a young woman hiding behind a feigned mask of sexual experience. Completing the triangle is Kimberley Hart Simpson as Chantal, another young woman looking to find her way across a seemingly endless battlefield. All three performers execute Lydia Rain’s text with conviction, and give the audience a glimpse into the lives of these previously uncovered voices.
There are times, however, when Buglight could push things further. The gravitas of some scenes, including one where we find out Paulette is pregnant, could certainly be reinforced through the company truly investing more time to evoke the dramatic tension inherent in the narrative. In spite of this, Buglight have created a special and compelling piece of new work.
Buglight Theatre’s The House Behind the Lines is on at The Civic, Barnsley on 1st December 2016. For more information, click here.
