Memorial: Redefining Storytelling with Only One Voice

Homer's Illiad is referred to as the 'goriest' of the ancient poems, in which Greek and Trojan warriors meet their fates in violent, bloody and graphic ways. Alice Oswald's Memorial is a visceral and faithful adaptation of the poem which has the oral history of the dead (or 'oral cemetery' in her words) at the moral centre of the work. Presented by Alice Oswald and Brink Productions, Memorial is one of the most stunning pieces of live theatre I have ever seen.

Chris Drummond translated Oswald's work in a powerful immensely theatrical journey; manifesting both the Gods and the ghosts on stage, conjuring up 'a living communion with our immortal selves'. It could not have been an easy task to do to solely working off a poem with the lines being open to a plethora of adaptations. But he did it and it was sensational.

There are 215 actors on stage representing the fallen soldiers who are a continual presence on stage, transforming the landscape between each poem with their simplistic yet powerful movements. By having each actor is from the local community; it adds another deeper layer to the text and makes us reflect on not just our own humanity, but humanity as a whole.

Helen Morse is the storyteller and she is magnificent. Dressed in a red robe, she is the immortal God that embodies all forty-two pages of the poem and how she managed to learn all of those lines is simply astounding. She transforms each line of the poem and makes each death different, making sure that they're each remembered for who they are and highlighting that each ghost was different. Through her voice, she showed us that we all have our own story and that none of us are the same, yet we are connected, even when we are disconnected from the world of the living.

Multi-award winning composer Jocelyn Pook's transcendent music takes you on an exquisite emotional journey from start to finish. She creates an aural landscape in which each note is filled with such intensity and precision that you can't help but get lost in the momentum. The live band are set high above the stage and look down on the performers, like Gods looking down on the mortals. They are exquisite; with Loni Fitzpatrick Kelly McCusker, Jonathon Peter Kenny, Melanie Pappenheim, Tanja Tzarvoska and Kieran Welch's vocals and seamless harmonies are filled with so much intensity and raw emotion. My favourite was Monique Clare (cellist) and Annie Silva (double bass), who combined created a haunting, mellow atmosphere to compliment the nature of the chorus on stage. Many band members played and sang at the same time, which was such a beautiful touch.

Yaron Lifchitz's choreography really demonstrated the power of simplicity and the notion of 'less means more' by having the ensemble create haunting landscapes through both their moving and still bodies, especially the moments in which Morse was trapped by the ghosts. The three principal dancers were a lonely addition to Morse's dialogue, who quite literally narrated the text.

Memorial is an exquisite deeply-moving emotional experience, that we are very lucky to have access to in our contemporary theatrical world.

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