The Woman Who Turned Into A Tree
Presented by Omnibus Theatre and Collide Theatre
World Premiere of Lisa Langseth's play
Playing at the Omnibus Theatre in South London from the 4th to the 22th April 2023
Daphne is desperate to re-invent herself. Class, looks, money, men.
Daphne is a young woman living in a world governed by toxic masculinity and scrupulous judgement. With no support network, plummeting mental health and growing paranoia, Daphne gradually loses touch with reality.
The Woman Who Turned into a Tree is a world premiere from writer Lisa Langseth (Love & Anarchy, Netflix) and director Emily Louizou. Fusing original music with live sound and movement, this new play inspired by the Daphne myth is a timely tale about isolation, identity and destructive obsession with the opinions of others.
Writer: Lisa Langseth
Director: Emily Louizou
Translator: Rochelle Wright
Set & Costume Design: Ioana Curelea
Music Composition: David Denyer
Movement Direction: Ioli Filippakopoulou
Lighting Design: Amy Hill
Dramaturgy: Sam Pout
Stage Manager: Steph Siraut
Assistant Director: Alexandra Stroming
Assistant Producer: Sanjana Samaddar
Assistant Stage Manager: Eve Wilson
Photography: Lucy Feng & Dan Tsantilis
Performed by:
Bathsheba Piepe and Ioli Filippakopoulou
And a special thank you to Richard Hope for lending his voice to the show as Daphne's father.
"The Woman Who Turned Into A Tree is a triumph in introspective storytelling which is as thought-provoking as it is entertaining. It is relevant for anyone who feels as though they may be sinking at times under the weight of expectation or isolation and uses a clever mythology-influence to deliver its messages in a fun and unpredictable way utilising great creative movement. It is stronger for its direct and authoritative style which comes across as both measured and authentic, while still leaving room for its audience to interpret their own outcomes. Its cool set and funky soundtrack are matched by outstanding performances. If this show began a seed, it is well on its way to becoming a tree."
All That Dazzles
A fable-cum-horror story, atmospherically directed by Emily Louizou. Piepe’s performance feels genuinely fraught while Filippakopoulou, also movement director, very creepily manifests Daphne’s fracturing, doubling over, as if in pain, slipping out of the wardrobe or staggering across the floor. There are voiceovers, too, it all verges on the baroque but never gets hammy and there is excellently eerie music by David Denyer.
The Guardian
"The play is an ode to a woman’s bumpy journey towards a difficult metamorphosis. In our story, the Tree stands for self-growth, self-love and self-care. Inspired by the Ancient Greek myth of the nymph Daphne, the piece follows Daphne, a 30-year old woman, as she tries to reinvent herself. While Daphne is desperately looking to create a version of herself which her society would deem as acceptable or even respectable, I come to wonder how many sacrifices young women keep making in order to shoehorn themselves (their bodies, their ideas, their lives) into what others want for them.
"The Woman Who Turned Into A Tree depicts a woman’s frantic race to keep up with the latest fashion trends, latest stereotypes about how the ‘perfect’ woman should look, talk, walk, eat, sleep, flirt. Our Daphne is obsessed with how others perceive her and that’s why she keeps running away from her own self, from her own wildness and madness. But soon she realises that this race is pointless, it turns her into an empty shell, void of emotions and of real desires.
In the myth Daphne pleads to her father so he can turn her into a tree and save her from Apollo’s manic chase. The myth would always make me angry: why should a young woman, who is very clear about not wanting to have sex with a horny God, should have to sacrifice her human existence in order to escape rape? Working with Lisa Langseth, the writer, in developing this production has been a real privilege. Lisa’s way of re-inventing the Greek myth and re-introducing Daphne in a modern context comes with a lot of wit, humour, and a beautiful touch of magical realism.
Emily Louizou - Read the full article here!
