CELEBRATINGHUMANITY
A BRIGHT AND BAWDY TALE OF FEMALE COURAGE
The story of eccentric Briti sh widow and socialite Laura Henderson is a quirky legend of British history.
In the 1930s, Henderson founded the Windmill Theatre, which was famous for its nude female performers (who stood still as statues, so that they could be considered “art,” and not violate the laws of decency at the time), and for staying open through the London Blitz during the Second World War.
On screen, Mrs. Henderson was portrayed by Dame Judi Dench in director Stephen Frears’ 2005 film Mrs. Henderson Presents. It was irresistible subject matter for playwright and director Terry Johnson.
“The story of the Windmill is a unique and eccentric slice of British history, both theatrical and social,” says Johnson. “It beckoned me into the conflicted corners of the British psyche that have always interested me; our prudishness, our bawdiness, our humour, our courage. Our self- deprecation, our national pride.”
Johnson’s musical adaptation of Mrs. Henderson Presents was a hit in London’s West End last year, and receives its North American premiere at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in March.
According to Johnson, Henderson’s story is an important facet of British theatrical history.
“The extraordinary Laura Henderson, who changed the face of Soho, is a quintessentially English study, and the story of Maureen, representing as it does one girl’s journey into womanhood and true self-definition, was a gift to explore.”
The present political situation in the world has been likened by many to the dark times of the 1930s — but Johnson draws no dir- ect correlations between the time period depicted in Mrs. Henderson Presents and the present day. “Great stories are timeless. It’s a great story,” he says. “I have made no efforts to modernize the tale; on the contrary, we ensure that there is an authenticity to period both musically and verbally. It’s old fashioned, in the old- fashioned sense. It’s a door into a lost and almost forgotten world.”
Still, even though times change, human beings tend not to. “We spend our lives in avoidance of the darker truths until they literally fall on us. We fiddle, Rome burns,” says Johnson. “The characters in Mrs. Henderson Presents are rudely reminded that the real world beyond the imaginary walls of our entertainments can be damning of our little efforts, and sometimes lethal to them.”
Nude women as artwork is not a new concept, and wasn’t even in the 1930s and ‘ 40s. Johnson insists that in this case, nudity can be empowering. “If I had sensed exploitation in either the tale or the telling of it I would not have made the show. What intrigues me the most is that the shedding of one’s clothes can lead directly to empowerment,” he says. “This is no mystery to those who choose to try it, and can be affirmed by the remaining ( now mostly octogenarian) ‘ Windmill Girls,’ who feel their lives were strongly defined by becoming, as one of them phrased it to me; living art. Our audience can rest assured that our tableaux girls feel as nurtured and admired as their original counterparts. The erotic tableaux is a celebration of our humanity, our vulnerability, and our innate sexual admiration of one another. It’s pretty, and it’s fun.”
Johnson hopes the story of Mrs. Henderson and her ‘ Windmill Girls’ will elicit “a smile and a tear.”
He also hopes the musical itself will come across as a tribute to an earlier entertainment style, and that audiences will feel “a sense of what it was like to be at the gestation of a new theatrical form, a new Soho, a new England,” he says. “Ultimately, it’s a tale of female courage, t old t hrough a bright kaleidoscope of theatrical endeavour.” National Post readers enjoy a 25% discount on top-priced tickets (excluding premium seating) for Tues-Thurs eve performances from March 14 - 30. Please use code POSTMHP when ordering through mirvish. com and 416-872-1212. More details at mirvish.com/post