Arguably the most important dynamic in a woman’s formative years, the relationship between a mother and daughter is often fraught with hidden tensions and seldom runs smooth all the time. Women’s place in society may have changed over the decades, but the ebb-and-flow of expectations between mothers and daughters are timeless. The only question is who has disappointed who the most…
Written by By Katie Redford and directed by Rob Watt, Wish You Weren’t Here focuses on Lorna (Eleanor Henderson) and Mila (Olivia Pentelow) – a mother and daughter from Sheffield who are taking their annual trip to Scarborough. This time around, Mila has finished her GCSEs and passed with good grades. For Lorna, this year is extra special too. Asides from this being the first trip to Scarborough since her own mother died, Mila is now the same age Lorna was when she gave birth to her. It’s a time for celebrating, taking stock, remembrance, all of the above…
Compared to her mother, Mila is a taciturn person and less enthusastic about everything. Then again, Lorna is in high spirits and as Mila is 16 years old, sharing a room with one’s mother is less-than-desirable at that age. Also, Mila is a bit distracted by her friends who are celebrating the end of exams by spending time in London, keeping tabs on developments there via her phone. Like many mothers, Lorna takes an interest in her daughter’s social life and keen to hear about potential boyfriends. When it comes to the subject of Mila’s father however, Lorna’s countenance changes and less receptive to speaking positively about him.
The chemistry between the principal actors is great and you really get the sense that the characters know each other’s foibles intimately. Even without saying much of anything, you can see the difference in their body language, how much they are enjoying (or not) the dancing arcade machines and their lodging’s ‘premium’ room! But who really is the ‘parent’ and the ‘child’ is the question…
One of the things that isn’t talked about initially (but later becomes the ‘elephant in the room’) is what it feels like for Mila being a mixed race child. Posters such as ‘Beach Body Ready’ only remind her of not only her internalised body self-esteem issues, but also how she doesn’t meet the advertising industry’s standards of beauty.
Concerned about the environmental damage to the planet and other social issues, Mila feels and cares about everything deeply, including the death of her grandmother. If anything, Mila feels everything too deeply, with no way of protecting her mental health and ironically, could learn something from her mother about compartmentalising negative thoughts. And while Mila feels Lorna working in a call centre is a reflection of her lack of ambition (as opposed to her father who can take her on vacation to Portugal), Mila has a lot to learn about people having to take any job they can find to survive.
Henderson’s Lorna has a youthful demeanour and in some ways it makes perfect sense. Only 32 and full-time mother since she was 16, small wonder when Lorna gets the chance, she like to go out and have fun. Of course, with Lorna’s mother previously around to help raise Mila, life wasn’t as tough as it could have been. But with having a fractured relationship with mother and daughter, estranged from her former female friends and no serious relationships to speak of, Lorna is understandably lonely. The annual sojourns to Scarborough are what make life bearable…
Wish You Weren’t Here compacts a lot of issues within a short space of time. More importantly, the audience cares about the characters and the play shows how in familial relationships, nobody has all the answers or all the blame.
© Michael Davis 2024
Wishing You Weren’t Here runs at Soho Theatre from 19th February to 2nd March.
It continues its national tour at:
7th – 8th March Brighton Dome
Church Street, Brighton and Hove, Brighton BN1 1UE
https://brightondome.org/whats-on/
14th – 15th March Yvonne Arnaud Theatre
Millbrook, Guildford GU1 3UX
https://www.yvonne-arnaud.co.uk/whats-on/wish-you-werent-here
Breaking The Fourth Wall 