tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186801031072072072.post3083830573410636894..comments2023-07-22T10:43:06.966+01:00Comments on The home of great theatre in Glasgow: Truly moving theatreAlison Martinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12362754989793495648noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186801031072072072.post-38762137184522494802010-03-09T10:26:31.421+00:002010-03-09T10:26:31.421+00:00A deeply absorbing study of this young woman's...A deeply absorbing study of this young woman's personal complexities, artistic depths and burning desire to help end the cruel injustices visited upon the Palestinian people. A profoundly political statement infused with compassionate conviction and loving concern for suffering others.<br /><br />Mairi Phillips brought to director Ros Philips' intimately-crafted set a moving, eloquent and beautifully-delivered account of Rachel's short-life journey, from child idealist to determined activist.<br /><br />Handling an exquisitely nuanced narrative with great assurance, Philips gives sincere and fascinating vent to Rachel's fragile fears and apprehensions as well as her courageous commitment and passionate resolve.<br /><br />The performance conveys the very essence of Rachel's proactive politics, driven by a relentless effort to comprehend how such atrocities can be tolerated and ignored by a supposedly 'civilized' world. <br /><br />Through Rachel's vividly-detailed diary, we also get a powerful sense of the Palestinians' own stoic humanity, illustrated by their kind, selfless caring for Rachel and in their simple longing to live in peace.<br /><br />In a further illuminating correspondence, she answers her mother's discomfort with Palestinian violence, resulting in Rachel's mature contextual analysis of why a people can be pushed to such desperate forms of retaliation. <br /><br />The play also registers, in more implicit form, what Israel itself knows and fears: that even the mightiest array of military, political and psychological oppression can never crush that spirit of resistance.<br /><br />A remarkable production, made all the more timely with the Corrie family's current legal suit against Israel.<br /><br />John Hilley<br />(GPHRC)<br /><br />http://johnhilley.blogspot.com/John Hilleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10072819649049077782noreply@blogger.com