Returning to the stage after a successful run at Edinburgh in 2002, Nia Williams’s historical musical Mrs Pack focuses on a little-known figure, the wet nurse who cared for Princess, later Queen Anne’s surviving child. Mrs Pack (her first name has been lost to time) has been described as the prototype of the modern nanny.
For years when we did history at school, I thought Queen Anne was simply a childless monarch who left no one to follow her in succession. However, after numerous pregnancies, indicated in this production by a washing line of printed announcements and a few items of clothing, were lost to miscarriage, stillbirth, or very early death of daughters, a son, Prince William, Duke of Gloucester, was born in 1689.
A sickly child, he was nevertheless expected to grow into his role and beyond his disabilities, and was beaten by his father for being weak. Mrs Pack, herself resigned to losing her own children for reasons relating to illness and poverty, is pragmatic but slowly asserts her authority over the household.
Most actors in Mrs Pack play multiple roles, aside from Olivia Baker who plays housemaid Atty, and it is particularly interesting to see Freya Jacklin portray both Mrs Pack and court favourite Lady Sarah Churchill, both formidable women who cast considerable influence over Anne’s household.
Nia Williams, as writer and musical director, accompanies the musical numbers, which are richly assembled and given both humour and poignancy. The four person cast deliver a powerful sound and their quick role switches are expertly handled throughout.
This is an ambitious piece which takes considerable historical research and sets it in an accessible format, signposting the years and presenting the characters in somewhat anachronistic but not unacceptable costuime. Losing a child, caring for a child, is something that is universal.
Chris Johnstone plays both mother and father, plus three other roles, while Isabella Jeffrey is delightful as Prince William and impassively regal as Queen Mary (Anne’s older sister who ruled jointly with William of Orange). Baker’s Atty is both rival to Mrs Pack and close observer of events as they occur, and presents the sympathetic voice of service.
Katie Blackwell’s direction ably balances the elements of farce and the serious aspects of this story. The women cradle bundles of material to represent their babies. Off-stage sounds demonstrate what cannot be shown, and group movement underlines the repetitive nature of royals needing to bear children again and again no matter what has happened before.
Mrs Pack, at 56 minutes, feels as if it has more to say, and certainly there is scope to develop both song and dialogue further.
Exploring the character of Anne in greater depth may be an interesting way to go forward, including how she herself felt about the loss of her children. After all, The Favourite took a singular approach to this, and with the wet nurse angle, it could stretch to more than a one act production.
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Mrs Pack continues at the Etcetera Theatre as part of Camden Fringe on 24 & 25 August with details here.
My thanks to Nia Williams for supplying me with a video of this show.