Milk and Gall at Theatre 503
In this age, birth is not foreign, even to the men out there. And due to lockdown, we have all been reborn as different people – people who had their lives delayed, who are now allowed to visit the theatre. Writer Mathilde Dratwa and director Lisa Spirling were also delayed due to having children. A finalist for the 503 International Playwriting Award in 2018, Milk and Gall tackles motherhood, not just on stage, but also backstage. The cast were permitted to bring their young children with them to rehearsals, and some were allowed to leave early to pick theirs up – proof that, in 2021, motherhood is no obstacle.
In 2017, Trump is elected into office while Vera (MyAnna Buring) is giving birth in a hospital. As the rest of the planet crumbles in the wake of the businessman’s victory, baby Rod’s world builds amid blissful ignorance as Vera’s partner, Michael (Matt Whitchurch), lies to her about the electoral outcome. Throughout, Buring successfully portrays a new mother whose life is thrown into disorder by politics, while the cast around her perfectly display the ignorance of non-parents. Vera feels truly disconnected, her only window to the outside world the visitors she receives in the hospital, and then at home.
With each actor, besides Buring, playing multiple roles, the diversity and versatility of the cast is showcased. Jenny Galloway is a highlight, emoting the difference between mother and in-law merely through mannerisms, before she even speaks in the staple, high-pitched in-law tone, and making Michael’s mother as annoying to the audience as she is to Vera – and they’ve only witnessed her for five minutes.
The narrative is set in New York, not Hollywood, so the actual realities of childrearing are on full show, from uncomfortable sex to even more harrowing toilet visits – everything the midwives don’t tell you to expect when you’re expecting is rightly normalised with humour. It is not all comedy though, as Vera’s isolation is explored in her surreal fever dreams; even Hillary Clinton makes a cameo. Ultimately, the dreams, or moments when Vera passes out from exhaustion, help her realise that gaining a baby does not cost an identity, despite her life now revolving around something other than the sun. She is still able to attend marches, have conversations with her best friend Amira (Sherine Chalhie) and raise her child well.
Spirling and Mathilde treat Milk and Gall as one of their own offspring, nurturing it all the way to the end. Even if one hasn’t had children, the play gives a relatable account of isolation in the post-Trump age, so it has something for everyone to resonate with.
Regan Harle
Photos: Jane Hobson
Milk and Gall is at Theatre 503 from 3rd November until 27th November 2021. For further information or to book visit the theatre’s website here.
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