Rosamund Gravelle’s new play Three Queens is set in the Tudor court of Mary I. It’s the eve of Lady Jane Grey’s execution, the cousin who was named Queen but deposed nine days later.
Elizabeth Tudor, Queen-to-be, plays chess with her friend and paramour Robert Dudley as her lady-in-waiting, Kat Ashley watches. Then a hooded figure is seen under guard heading to Mary’s chambers.
The play opens with Jane facing her death on the block, the axe wielded by Mary. This is a tale of power, the divine tight of majesty, of religion, and of women seeking to survive in a world of men.
Martha Crow takes on the role of Jane, part sulky teenager, part “true queen.” A fierce Protestant, she despises the Catholic faith and all who follow it. But she also loves life and craves scholarly seclusion.
The sisters Mary (Becky Black) and Elizabeth (Eliza Shea) walk a tightrope of mistrust and trauma. Both neglected by their father, both declared illegitimate, craving power, and doing what they can to survive.
Gravelle’s script rehabilitates the common perception of ‘Bloody Mary’ and director Sharon Willems presents her as devout and somewhat vulnerable in her chamber of candles and crosses.
Family is key. Jane Grey is the Queen’s cousin, as is the cardinal who seeks to save her soul, Reginald Pole. On the other hand, Jane married into the Dudley family so has divided ties and loyalties.
It’s a complex story that works best if you know the underlying history behind this fictional meeting. But don’t worry – if you don’t, you can still follow the plot.
If you’ve missed the countless times the Tudors have been mined for drama, I recommend downloading the programme at the theatre, which gives all the context.
Les Kenny-Green’s Pole and Sushant Shekhar’s Dudley feel like men not to be trusted, both in attempting to browbeat Jane and in accusing Mary and Elizabeth of weakness and dishonesty.
One interesting facet of Three Queens is Mary’s dread of killing a Queen, albeit one not anointed by God. Elizabeth, when she is on the throne, will have no such qualms in dispatching her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots.
Three Queens hints at Mary’s illness, Elizabeth’s frivolity, and at the calming figure of Kat Ashley (Sally Sharp). Kat’s story would fill the plot of an entire play itself, as she was present for most of Elizabeth’s reign as her chief lady-in-waiting.
This play is a snapshot of what might have been and gives Jane a voice. In fact, should this play whet your appetite, it is followed by Jen Tucker’s The Nine-Day Queen from 14-19 May.
Three Queens has an extended run at Barons Court Theatre until 11 May with tickets here.
***.5
Image credit: Rosamund Gravelle/Leo Bacica