The tension in the hall as the play unfolded was palpable and remained so throughout. It was a wonderful debut performance by Natasha Jayahendry as Noor. The author, Deborah Clair, played Vera with conviction. Tim Marriot as Hans Josef Kieffer, played his part with a charm that cleverly did not disguise his ruthless character as a Gestapo officer. The evening ended brilliantly with Jitterbug John and his wife demonstrating the popular Jitterbug dance of the 40s. Some of the audience joined in and tried their hand under his guidance. It was an exuberant end to a super, thought-provoking evening.
What better way of knowing how the audience reacted to the play than to ask them to write down their thoughts? Lorna Challand wrote: “On Friday evening, June 24 , I attended a play in Winchelsea New Hall and was transported back to the 1940s. The play SOE Special Operations Executive concerned Vera Atkins, former resident of Winchelsea, and Princess Noor Inayat Khan. Vera Atkins was an intelligence officer for SOE in the second world war and her job was to recruit women who spoke fluent French to be sent as spies to occupied France as radio operators.
“The play used a minimalist set and props throughout: a desk, a couple of chairs and doorways, which effectively created the scenes of the action. The writer, Deborah Clair, played the role of Vera, admirably portraying the picture of a no-nonsense, well-spoken English women of the times. Natasha Jayahendry, playing Noor, beautifully created the sensitivity but determination of this brave agent.
“The scenes took us through the relationship of Noor and Vera: the planning for the mission including the chilling detail of the cyanide pill to be taken if Noor was caught; and her eventual capture, escape attempts and final execution in Belsen. The author used various techniques to tell the story including imagined conversations Vera had with Noor after her death which conveyed how affected Vera must have been by the loss of her agents. Vera eventually found out what had happened to them at Nuremberg where she was able to interview Hans Josef Kieffer, head of German secret police in Paris.
“The play was very moving especially as it was performed in Vera Atkins’ home territory and some of the audience had known her.“
Hilary Roome, secretary of the Winchelsea Literary Society, had this to offer: “The play was gripping, dignified and very moving. The sparse set and choreographed movements heightened the tension. It was an emotional experience, watching Noor – young, innocent and determined, and Vera – in pain, unable to help Noor. Kiefer made me so angry, so I was relieved when Vera told him to stop his “comedy” of remorse. This is a clever play about strong women, and I thought the acting was very good. It was wonderful to see a professional production on stage here in Winchelsea.”
David Page, former mayor of Winchelsea, felt that SOE sprang alive with the imagined encounter between Vera and Noor in the central part of the play. It was “flirtatious but guarded. A burden of heavy narrative, especially in the closing part, was perhaps unavoidable but was dramatically less satisfying. The sense of subterfuge – of not knowing what really happened against what was imagined – was confusing to some of the audience but, given the necessary deviousness of the SOE operation, an essential part of the dramatic experience.”
Image Credits: Kt bruce .