The world premiere of '(un)written (un)heard' – a joint effort between Ellandar Productions and 45North – explores Dorothy Lawrence, a 19-year-old British journalist who rode a bicycle to the front line of World War I.
She rode there to write the story of the century – a move that ultimately caused her to fight for the remainder of her life.Dorothy was Joan Of Arc on a bicycle. Somewhere in the middle of the tragic beginning and end of her life she achieved the unthinkable, defying the patriarchy, snubbing the War Office, and becoming the only British woman soldier to serve on the front line of the Great War.
The powers that be placed her under military arrest and she was silenced and forgotten. . . Until now!
Director Jessica Rose McVay reunites with playwright Iskandar R. Sharazuddin after collaborating on 'Post-Mortem' in 2019. They're joined by choreographers Iona Kirk and Ellie Walker-Smith and together they create a lyrical, contemporary piece of storytelling brought to life by dance, movement and gesture.
"She was ahead of her time. She fought at the dug trenches at the front for ten days on ration scraps from her accomplices. She wrote the stories of the soldiers she fought alongside – how they lived, and how they died. Giving voice to those who could no longer speak. She should have been a hero," Jessica says.
Dorothy fought for her very existence as a world of men attempted to pull her apart. Now, a forgotten woman is finally put in her rightful, triumphant place – at the heart of the story.
