With Annie Wobbler (Revisited), Olivier Award winning actress Nichola McAuliffe revives Arnold Wesker’s 1981 play, and challenges Fringe audiences by asking the question — are modesty and self-deprecation female conditioning, or the female condition?
Following the lives of three women, Anna, a young graduate, Annabella, a successful novelist, and finally Annie Wobbler, an older homeless woman, the play sharply grapples with imposter syndrome; it reveals all three of their intricate inner lives which are all burdened with struggles of identity and self-worth.
Though written 45 years ago and only revisited now, the play felt precise in its execution of explaining modern anxieties of belonging and how often the public persona we are greeted with is merely a performance to meet the conditions of the world around them. Indeed, the set corroborates this, as Anna’s monologue where she reveals she is going on a date with a man she finds rather arrogant, takes place in a dressing room. Alongside McAuliffe’s transfixing performance, the set here highlights the pressure she feels to project a façade, masking her insecurities over her intellect which leads her to criticise her degree from what she self describes as a “black brick” university.
What was most impressive about this performance was McAuliffe’s tremendous power in weaving both humour and heart so seamlessly between characters. Every emotion, from rage to extreme pain was felt deeply by the audience. For example, Annabella is interviewed and constantly asked what drives her to write. She answers that she hopes there is no direct answer and that her literature is to be interpreted. however the interviewer is left unsatisfied. From here, her frustration at this bombardment of questioning escalates and she later exclaims sarcastically that it is fame, money and power that drives her. Here McAuliffe’s performance is vivid and why this play feels so refreshingly modern. In a world of vicious media which constantly upholds cruel double standards for women, McAuliffe’s performance handles questions of women’s worth and identity with tenderness and vulnerability.
Annie Wobbler (Revisited) is running until 30 August at the Ace Dome at Pleasance Dome. Buy tickets here.
Image by Feliks Toploski, provided to The Student for press use.
