Review: THE FOX BY DH LAWRENCE DIRECTED BY ANNABEL HENSLEY by Wellington Repertory

Wellington Repertory Theatre is running it's latest offering, an adaptation of DH Lawrence's The Fox written by Keith Scott, a Dunedin playwright known for his historical works and original stage plays.

Directed by Annabel Hensley, it is set in rural England in 1918, just after the end of WW1.

Two women manage a small farm and live a quiet, if unfulfilling, life. Their world is disrupted by two arrivals—a fox threatening their hens and a young soldier. These events spark a complex interplay of instincts, power dynamics, and emotional tension.

The main themes are sexuality, femininity, war trauma, and primal instincts—all central to Lawrence’s original novella and preserved in Scott’s adaptation.

The set is well designed having the home that the two women live in on one side and the outside area with a woodpile and bench seat on the other.

It opens with Nellie coming on stage carrying a rifle, ready to take out the fox that has been tormenting the hens.  She locks eyes with it and sees just how beautiful it is and the moment to strike is lost when Jill calls out to Nellie and breaks the trance she is in. Shortly thereafter, a young soldier, Henry, arrives looking for his grandfather, who used to live in the house a few years ago.

We are left wondering as to the relationship that Nellie and Jill share, that is up to us to determine. Henry manages to get invited in and causes the staid lives of Nellie and Jill to be disrupted.

As with all plays that have a small cast, it is imperative that they are believable in their roles. Lottie Butcher as Nellie delivered a nuanced performance, particularly strong as the quieter of the two women. Yasmine Alani played Jill with tremendous energy, highlighting the difference in personalities between them. Sven Hoerler as Henry was measured and impassive, the way the character was written. Also quite creepy........

There was good use of sound effects and were timed well, this really makes such a difference. Lighting was effective, though not too taxing with limited requirements for light changes.

I thought the costuming was of a good standard, however there was a hole in the jumper worn by Nellie that I found quite distracting and hope that can be fixed. 

The cast were directed well, with plenty of well planned movement that never felt out of place. 

All in all, while the subject matter is quite dark, there was a lot to like in this production, most notably the cast performances. The play ran a little under two hours including intermission, so not a late night either.

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