Review by Jo Hills
On Friday July 25 at New Plymouth’s 4th Wall Theatre, Auckland actress Cassandra Woodhouse opened a short, return season of Prima Facie: a stunning solo performance.
The opening night audience is largely women, but with a mix of ages as some local, female high school drama students are present. Later, Woodhouse welcomes the few men in attendance saying how glad she is they came as their voice is so important to hear in what is seen as a woman’s issue.
In the first part of the 90-minute performance Woodhouse, under the directorship of well-known New Zealand actor and director Michael Hurst, gives a brilliant portrayal of young, highly successful lawyer Tessa.
We see her in action in the court room. Like a thoroughbred racehorse, she is quick off the mark as she knows all the tricks to winning a case. Tessa sees law as a game and she knows how to play and win. She feels the thrill of finding holes in others’ stories and bringing them down. She secures freedom for men accused of sexual assault when they may well have been guilty. She herself is a success story to be admired as she has clawed her way up from lower class to mix with the private-school educated lawyers she now works with.
Woodhouse pumps with the adrenaline of this power-crazy character. The audience loves it, but already begins to doubt whether to believe or trust in the law and the legal system.
Then things change dramatically. Tessa herself experiences sexual abuse. Woodhouse cleverly reveals the change in Tessa’s personality as she loses confidence and doubts anyone will believe her own story. From powerful lawyer to doubting victim Woodhouse captures the shift beautifully.
After a brilliant portrayal of the character Tessa, Woodhouse announces the haunting and powerful closing words of this dramatic play, “Something has to change.”
These ever-hopeful words refer to the current legal system faced by sexually abused women if they are brave enough to go to court. Confronted with a process that for generations has been shaped predominantly by males, the women often become re-victimised when they give evidence and are sometimes not even believed. In the legal world things are not always seen as they appear at first sight or on the face of it, thus the title of this play, the Latin name, Prima Facie.
Written by Australian Suzie Miller, Prima Facie certainly exposes some global legal anomalies. It also reveals some alarming statistics like 1 in 3 women (I’m told that’s a New Zealand statistic) will suffer sexual assault. If brave enough to press charges the woman can wait years for a court hearing. Tessa, the woman portrayed by Woodhouse, waits 782 days.
I struggle with the ending of Prima Facie. It is obviously not the closure I want. However, it is probably the result many sexually assaulted women experience nowadays. My biggest regret over the conclusion though is that it may well put women off from disclosing these sexual crimes, or pressing charges and going to court, especially if they have to wait a long time for that court hearing. I fear they will opt to take the easier option and become silent victims. I don’t want to walk away with that being this play’s message.
However, in a Question-and-Answer session post-show Woodhouse takes away some of my concern. She declares she is absolutely an advocate for change. She hopes that by performing this theatre work it will one day lead to that change. As an example, Prima Facie has been performed especially for judges, barristers and politicians. Maybe they will make that change happen and there is hope for the future.
You can understand the passion Woodhouse has for the cause. She has driven herself from Auckland just for these weekend performances with her few effective stage props and costumes crammed into her car. That is dedication.
Meanwhile, the Q&A session initiates some great discussion. Woodhouse has invited a local woman police officer up on stage to support her with queries and to listen to stories.
During this post-show talk though I start to feel uneasy again. I look at how scantily dressed, almost sexually attired, Woodhouse appears as she returns back on stage and out of costume. I wonder if Woodhouse is a good role model for the young female drama students who are present. Then I contemplate if she Is actually making a statement that a woman should be safe no matter how she is dressed. Coincidentally, as I ponder these thoughts, some mothers ask advice on what they can do to keep their teenagers (both male and female) safe from sexual abuse.
I then realise this show prompts not only some wonderful discussion but poses as many questions as there are answers. In short it is great piece of theatre that I hope can be a channel to change the world.
Prima Facie plays in New Plymouth until Sunday July 26.
Copyright © in the review belongs to the reviewer