Divorce is a hell of a thing to go through. Half of us who marry end up experiencing it.
Any attempts to depict it, to express it and to actually reckon with it, should be applauded. ‘Fortified’ is one woman’s attempt at doing so and on stage Amity Dry is raw, personal and brave.
There's heavy stuff to deal with here including the abuse women can suffer at the hands of men but Amity and her support musician still put on a cabaret show. There is lighthearted banter with each other, interaction with the crowd and all original music.
It is great to have artists writing, producing and touring shows like this; Amity has a tremendous singing voice that remains on key throughout. Impressive also is the lighting design in the show, which ironically was the cause of a late start, but was worth it.
Yet the show is one perspective of what happened and how to come out of divorce, so it is maybe inevitably one-sided. Amity talks about the need that women feel to conform, and I couldn’t help but wonder about the man in the castle she alludes to and if he ever felt a similar need.
It seems it caused her a great deal of torment and she is now sharing her journey to let others know that you can and should live a happy life even if that means making hard decisions. That there is light at the end of the tunnel, that after the explosion you can re-build.
This is an important and inspiring message for all to hear and with ‘Fortified’ you hear some good songs beautifully sung too.
