THE RENDITION MEETS SHARON DUNCAN-BREWSTER
Image Credit - Alastair Muir
The final instalment of Clint Dyer and Roy Williams' ‘Death of England’ Trilogy, ‘Closing Time’, is a compelling 105-minute play that shifts the spotlight onto two pivotal women, previously known only through the narratives of others. In the earlier parts, these women existed in the background—Michael’s sister mentioned in passing and Delroy’s mother remembered through his stories. ‘Closing Time’ brings these essential figures to the forefront, granting voice and depth to the women who have been the emotional anchors in the lives of the men we've come to know.
Closing Time began its journey last autumn at the National Theatre, where Sharon Duncan-Brewster stepped in at the eleventh hour to fill the shoes of the iconic Jo Martin. Now, she returns to the stage, this time alongside Erin Doherty, in what promises to be a gripping finale to the Fletcher and Tomlin family saga.
We had the privilege of sitting down with Sharon to discuss her return to the role of Denise, the story she is determined to tell, and the vital importance of Black voices in bringing narratives like this to life.
“When their resistance has changed from the beginning of them walking into the auditorium, sitting down and watching the play, to when they leave, a changed person - that is theatre. ”
QUESTION: How does it feel to be part of this production for the second time?
Sharon: It feels good. This time I'm off book, I have no captions to help me, and I have rehearsals, which is a blessing. We have three weeks of rehearsals, which is not so much of a blessing, but, I mean, I'm the fortunate one in this instance, because I've at least got experience of the play.
Erin Dougherty (however) has come in with three weeks of rehearsal, and has just nailed it. She's got all the lines under her belt and we've got changes. This is the thing about it, this production, even though I did it before, it’s really different.
QUESTION: What would you say is different about this production to the one you did last autumn.
Sharon: When we performed it in October it was in two halves, there was an interval; but this time, because we're going to be doing it in rep, they've had to condense the play and , shorten it, so now, it's running, hopefully for about an hour and 45 minutes, but straight through.
There's been some cuts, and for me, having done the play before, I started to prepare for it before starting rehearsals as I knew it. So, I've had the mission of learning it, thinking I've got it under my belt, then coming into rehearsal two weeks ago, being told that it's changed . Now my head's become this sort of buffering computer laptop, where I'm learning and unlearning and then relearning.
This time around, the blessing is the rehearsal process and being in the room with Clint, who is just amazing. It's so gorgeous to be in the room with a director, who is also the writer because things can just change on the fly, but you can also, sit and go, what do you think they're saying here? And you can actually ask the writer what is going on. What the intentions are like, the true intentions behind the play. You can also contest and debate what's happening within it.
QUESTION: Can you speak more on the challenge you face as creatives when taking the stage?
Sharon: I think the journey that we go through as creatives, as performers, as actors is a roller coaster, because you get on the ride, not knowing what it is, not having any expectations, apart from, yeah, it might be challenging, and yes, it might be gruelling at certain points, and scary and at the same time, the joy that you will get and the thrill that you get of doing it, of being on that ride, it's guaranteed. You know it.
You just don't know when those moments are going to occur. And so when you're in it, especially in the process of rehearsal at this moment, where you are piecing things together and fighting to find the truth of the piece and your understanding of it, it is tiring. It's incredibly exhausting. I think the thing about this play, having done it before, is I have the knowledge of knowing that even after going through the rehearsal process, it is still exhausting. It's still challenging, because there's no moment where you get to pause within the piece. It's just like a charging locomotive train.
The difference of doing it the first time was, I didn't know, I didn't know what to expect, but I knew those were the regular expectations, but in this instance, because I know it, there is something it does mess with your head a bit, and it does make it a little bit more scary than it normally would.
QUESTION: With the play’s minimalist staging, the raw and intense emotion is pivotal to the narrative. How do you maintain that energy and depth throughout your performance?
Sharon: I think if you'd have asked me that question last year, I would have said, through the sheer force of will, trust of the lines, and now, having gone through the rehearsal process, I do think that it's still the case. As the play is so well written, and because it's really poetic, there's prose going on, there are certain anchors that carry the story, the narrative, and at the same time allow us to plough our way as performers through this tale. It is also written in present day, making it a lot easier, and because it is a two hander as well, the pressure is taken off you, in a way, as you have the other actor to interact with.
Having said that, we are portraying a multitude of characters who have very different characteristics and instincts and thoughts and feelings, but through the rehearsal process, it has definitely, become a lot easier to piece the play together, to be able to perform it in a way that you do trust what is written, and you do trust the truth of what the characters are trying to say about themselves and the way that they perceive the world around them.
There is a rhythm to it and once you find that sweet spot, you sit in it, and what comes from having that sweet spot is then the interaction with the audience - because I know what it was before, there is also a, rapport that becomes like a dance - and the audience is encouraged to take part.
It is also the trust that these two writers, Roy Williams and Clint Dyer have really placed, an incredibly rounded piece of food for people to sit and take a bite. Sometimes people take a bite of it and they don't like it, they don't want to swallow it. Some of them want to spit it out, you know - and then there are others, who you see, because we're so close to the audience - you see them swallowing these truths, these realities that leave nobody, there are all victims. There's nobody within the audience and us on stage, there's always somebody who can feel that they're being spoken to within these really blunt and brutal truths, that are sometimes about themselves.
It us and the audience, sharing this and so it becomes much more amplified and electric. There's a fizz that occurs that you can see when people are in one moment, laughing at themselves, and then the next minute, they're bowing their head in shame or embarrassment or question. For me, as far as theatre goes, that's the power of theatre. That's the beauty of theatre, when you can provoke someone and poke somebody, or the entire audience can leave going - wow, is that me? When their resistance has changed from the beginning of them walking into the auditorium, sitting down and watching the play, to when they leave, a changed person - that is theatre.
Image Credit - Alistair Muir
“When people come and see [the play], my hope is that they will come to an understanding or realisation that we all have a part to play in the rebirth, the rejuvenation of this country, and it starts with each and every single one of us not placing the blame elsewhere.”
QUESTION: “What does the phrase "Death of England" mean to you, given its profound emotional impact?
Sharon: I think a lot of people have been seeing the posters out and about, saying, Death of England, King George Cross, and our faces surrounding the Cross. And you know, it would be remiss, really, for some people to not have certain expectations of that imagery. The word alone Death of England it's a provocative, challenging statement, even if it's just a name. I think the world that we are living in today is not even just the Death of England, it's the death of a lot. Having gone through Covid-19 and the death of George Floyd - the world changed.We've had to ask ourselves some questions.
We've had to ask ourselves, where are we standing now or sitting now, or where do we exist right now? What needs to be changed and what can occur for this country to be great, not even great again, but for this nation to be great, or for this nation to be better. To be better, to do better, because what, what was unravelled and unveiled, I should say, was there are many issues within England that have been in existence for a very long time, and in order for us to have a New England, there has to be a death of England in order for there to be a rebirth of England.
Of course, some people are going to be offended by it, but I think just as with any of the other issues that reside with us as a collective nation. At the moment, people are so busy jumping to conclusions, they don't want to take the time to invest in inquiry, in self reflection, because that's what it means. I'm English. I'm British. So when I say Death of England, what's my part? What's the part that I play in that? And I think that's part of what this play is.
QUESTION: The beauty of Death of England lies in each character's unique narrative. How does your character’s journey in Closing Time contrast with their portrayal in the earlier parts of the trilogy?
Sharon: I think, having now seen the other two plays, because I never had a chance to watch them in their entirety, and now I've seen Paapa's and Thomas's performances in the show. I think Denise's journey, quite simply, is she is a black woman, who is able to express her frustration to somebody that she never imagined would ever fully, completely understand and by the end of the play, it happens. All she has ever wanted from this person is for that person to be on her level, and to apologise.
I think with the other characters, they're finding their way to their own truth, and I do believe that Denise is too. All the characters begin the play with something to say, they feel like they have something to say, but through the journey of actually expressing that truth, they come to a different realisation about themselves and the people around them. So I don't think she is any different to them even though she is a black woman in her 50s, it's just from her perspective, and she gets to speak from her perspective with her true voice.
That is also something that we don't ever really get to see in the West End of a certain age, of a certain class from a certain country or background on the stage in the West End - it doesn't happen very often in the present day, in current day dramas. It doesn't really happen.
QUESTION: As a Black woman in the industry, how does it feel to be part of a production that so openly discusses issues of race and identity?
Sharon: It’s a part that carries a lot of weight, because, as I said before, we don't really get to see many black women on the stage, sadly, and when you become one of the only Black women in a present daily drama. There are a lot of people looking at you with certain expectations as to how you're going to perform and what it is that you will convey, the way you convey it.
It's an honour to be playing Denise at the same time. It does carry pressure, because there are so many different types of black women out there, and there are many, many of us who are striving to be happy, surviving, thriving. Some of us have grievances like Dee, because she's in this working relationship with these people that have actually in the past, been incredibly racist towards her and so why on earth would a black woman like her go and open up a company with these people? But these things do happen in this world that we live in - we do integrate.
So to be able to be an actor on a stage, pulling that reality apart is, for me, is like a dream. I don't want to say it's a dream. It carries a certain amount of responsibility, and I hope that the way I do it is different to the way that Jo Martin did it before me, and is different to the way that the next person who takes this role on, because there are many different ways to tell this story.
I do believe that there are so many different ways to play this character, and that whenever I play this character today in 2024 will be the right way for somebody like me to be playing it, and the future, whoever comes next, there will probably be another because, of course, there will be a whole load of factual influencing incidents and instances that will affect the way people perceive the play in the future, just as they did last year. It's amazing to know that between October and now, so much has changed
QUESTION: What impact do you hope your portrayal will have on audiences, particularly in terms of understanding the complexities of identity and race in the UK?
Sharon: I hope audiences understand the importance of listening and taking time to process information and then take time to think about what that information means to them, and also what they then can and can't do about what they've acknowledged, the reality that they've acknowledged. I think people still make a lot of assumptions about black women on a day to day basis and as I'm now turning into a woman over a certain age, I'm amazed at how people still manoeuvre based on stereotypes, especially in this country, based on negative stereotypes.
There is something really important about this play, seeing a black British woman on stage vocalising her grievances, her frustrations, her needs, her wants, her desires. So it's not just our audience seeing an angry black woman on stage. We don't need that. That's not helpful, and that is not who Denise is.
She's a woman who's angry and has anger for a reason, quite rightly - it is justified. She is a woman who has desires, she has achieved so much, she's positive, she's acquired so much, she's worked hard, and she's now trying to enjoy the fruits of her labour. And once again, someone comes, something comes along, or someone comes along to scrub it, who shouldn't have a hand in that.
So hopefully we can start to get audiences understanding that we're not on the monolith. We are so different, but at the same time, fundamentally, they are incremental as a journey of growth that occurs for any human being.
We live that reality too. We work hard so we try to save money so that we can aspire to buy or, or have our shop or or have our own autonomy, own control, own our lives, you know, it's just like everybody else.
So I'm hoping that audiences will understand that there shouldn't be any resistance, that resistance serves nobody, we should watch things through a broader lens, we then receive more to then make conscious decisions about things, about the space that we're living in, the people that we're we are rubbing shoulders with, we interact with on a day to day basis.
Our in-depth conversation with Sharon has deepened our appreciation for the significance and artistry of ‘Death of England: The Plays’. These works skillfully present the state of the nation, offering it up for the audience to examine and reflect upon. As Sharon noted, the true beauty of theatre lies in its ability to invite, and both Clint Dyer and Roy Williams have masterfully opened the door to a space where questioning and understanding can flourish.
Death of England: Closing Time is showing @sohoplace Theatre from 22nd August — 28th September.
