Hailey Mashburn’s play about the Russian aviators in World War 2 had a previous life as an audio play in 2021, and I can see how its wordy structure would have worked in that format.
Five women have enlisted to fly against the Nazis, who refer to them as “night witches.” They would be the first women military pilots to directly engage an enemy in combat, flying having been a popular peacetime pursuit amongst women in Russia.
Set up by the practical Marina Raskova (Henriette Lausen), the unit assembles the fearless – Maya Waghorn’s Lydia, who bleaches her hair and accessorises her uniform – and the idealistic navigator Yevgeniya (Maria Masonou) who is both scientist and storyteller.
With them are Natalya (Yvonne Maxwell), who acts as a calm narrator, and pragmatist Nadezhda (Stephanie Van Driesen). Together, these pilots take their rickety second-hand planes and courage into the skies to kill or be killed.
Mashburn’s play is more psychological than physical – aided by a set, which includes projection, a model plane, and some carefully placed props. The tension is palpable; the women may display camaraderie, but each flight may be their last.
This is a play which reminded me a little of the classic Great War trenches play Journey’s End in its structure – the little people in a war without control, following orders and doing their job well.
When women are traditionally set to nurture and protect, it is understandable that this unit of flyers set fear into the hearts of their opponents. In their hand-me-down uniforms just that bit too large, and their sense of bravado, these ‘witches’ are formidable.
Mashburn doesn’t shy away from the reality of nightmares or the fear of final moments. As for that model plane, the cellar setting of this venue allows giant shadows to be projected to suggest we are looking into an airfield or watching a strike in progress.
Director Stephen Smith gives the actors the space to roam or to sit quietly. There are scenes that show humanity on the ground, while others are more military in tone. All the cast convinces with ease.
Where the play slips a little is in the absence of a central point of focus, which felt as if it should have been Natalya. As we watch and feel the tally of loss, it might have been helpful to loop back to her now and then.
However, this is a moving, inspiring, and instructive play that shines a light on a half-forgotten bit of conflict history.
Fire Embers Ash ran at Barons Court Theatre in Jan 2024.
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