Juniper, Juno and Joan. If I have a daughter, those names are at the top of my list.
Joan, the more traditional of them all and inspired by St Joan of Arc, France’s national heroine. It was to my delight to see the Voices of Joan, a feminist punk retelling of the renowned story of the Maid of Orleans — a feminist icon and one of the most famous bobs in history.
This production consisted of an intimate solo performance from creator, Janie Gibson, with direction from Anu Almagro. Reminiscent of Sydney Theatre Company’s one woman show Julia and Kip William’s gothic trilogy, The Picture of Dorian Gray, the production took inspiration from the use of technology to amplify the subject matter.
A simple blank stage was occupied only with a rack of obscure costumes, a heavy duty lifting trolley stack with a leaning tower of paper — calling attention to the measured performance of Gibson and her multiple onstage personas. Across the next hour, the audience will see Gibson traverse the historical landscape to find the real, vulnerable journey of Joan of Arc.
Opening with a cacophony of sound, overlay of recent and older news headlines, in between iconic pop songs, Gibson addresses the audience directly. Here we begin to understand the importance of voice. Gibson states that once word is spoken it remains forever and reverberates through the universe –– sound and radio become a vehicle for time travel.
The show is about much more than Joan of Arc, with healthy amounts of audience participation and the exchange of items of clothing. The show is an interactive experience and not just for those brave souls who choose to sit in the front row. Frivolous moments –– a Pussy Riot-esque costume, balaclava-clad Gibson desecration of an English Flag, an explanation of French geopolitical using cheese –– balances the seriousness; a poignant commemoration and criticism of patriarchy’s amorphous structures.
Despite the play’s advertisement as ‘radical’, the unpacking of negative narratives around a female historical figure has been a mainstay for years in indie theatre and fringe shows. The only part that could be considered ‘radical’ was nude scene where Gibson recreated Joan’s final burning at the stake: Gibson covered herself in red paint and called upon the audience to help build the pyre with their seats. The audience becomes complicit, involved in Joan’s demise rather than passive watchers.
Voices of Joan does justice to one of the most widely documented medieval trials engaging audiences through comedy, wit and intelligent sound design. It’s provocation beckons individual reflection on your own relationship with feminism. How much has really changed?
Joan’s judgement was passed centuries ago, her sentence read by in 1430 securing 19 year old Joan’s death at the stake. Those words of judgement circle us today knowingly and unknowingly as the next generation of feminists try to navigate the world and fight for what is just. This maybe not be delivered by the voice of God, but instead by a bob, or probably by a shag, or a wolf cut.
Voices of Joan is on until 14 September at the PACT Centre for Emerging Artists in Erskineville as part of the Sydney Fringe Festival. Tickets and more information can be found here.
