Just before we went away last weekend I went with my friend Wendy to see the opening performance of The Last Wife at the Stratford Festival. I don't know if it is because Wendy is a high school English teacher or the fact that we like quirky plays but we always seem to see a small production of something 'different'. Generally there is a bit of nudity and some language some might find offensive. Always there is an amazing play, well acted and with a story that has you thinking about what you saw and heard for some time.
The Last Wife certainly kept our streak going . . .
The Last Wife, Canda's own Kate Hennig’s new play, will premiere at Stratford’s Studio Theatre on August 14th (we saw it on the opening night of the previews). As someone with an interest in history the fact that this play is about the last wife of Henry VIII was enough to spark my interest.
Apparently I was not alone, as Kate Hennig’s “The Last Wife” has already sold out much of its run and been extended twice.
In 1543 Katherine Parr draws the eye of King Henry the VIII.
After the debacle of his fifth marriage to a girl thirty years his junior, Henry found himself in a novel position. For the first time in his tangled marital career, a future wife was not waiting to be claimed. The king turned fifty-one the year Catherine Howard was executed; he was obese, often bedridden and in great pain. His moods grew dark and vengeful. The Tudor court vacillated between the opposing factions of Catholicism and the reformed faith; they waited expectantly for Henry to choose his next wife, knowing she would tip the balance in favor of one party. But which? And was there a woman at court who would risk marrying the elderly king?
The position of Queen was the greatest honor for an Englishwoman; but in the last years of Henry’s reign, it was also the most dangerous honor.
When Katherine agreed to marry the king few could have guessed the impact she'd have. This intelligent, resourceful woman was as fascinating as she was important - she accomplished many 'first'. She was the first Queen of England and Ireland, the first English queen (and one of the first women) to publish a book under her own name, and regent (and by all accounts, a good one) for several months while Henry was away on a military campaign.
Katherine was also a devoted stepmother to Henry’s three children, despite the generally-accepted view that she was in love with her fourth husband Thomas Seymour before Henry’s suit and only married him under duress.
As a stepmother, Katherine is credited with reconciling Henry with his two daughters and playing a large part in the creation of the Act that ensured that both Mary (who would become “Bloody Mary”) and Elizabeth (later the great Elizabeth I) were accepted as legitimate heirs. A great scholar herself, she is also credited in large part with Elizabeth I’s substantial education.
The play is presented in the studio theatre - a small and intimate theatre with fewer than 200 seats. The stage is the typical Shakespearean thrust stage which ensures that there are 'no bad seats' and everyone feels as if they are a part of the action. both Wendy and I were fascinated by the play and found it do be both well written and very well acted. This was a story of a woman ahead of her time, a woman who knew how to use her abilities, talents, and skills to accomplish what she wished to. . . in fact, we were struck with the parallels from the era to our current day.
The play runs until October 7th at Stratford.
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