Last year, the battlefields of Ypres were transformed into the set of R.C. Sherriff’s Journey’s End. The show received rave reviews, one calling it “enthralling, good-humoured, finally heart-rending”. This autumn, the cast and crew of MESH Theatre return to Belgium to mark the 100th anniversary of Armistice. Here, director Sally Woodcock describes what it’s like to recreate history on the very ground it took place, and the family connections that inspired it.
‘I’ve loved Journey’s End since I first saw it in the West End in 2004. I wrote to my father in Australia the next day: “Saw the most brilliant play last night, Dad, set in the trenches of World War One. Can’t stop thinking about it.”
Both of my granddads fought in the First World War: my mother’s father – an Australian – in Gallipoli, Egypt, Belgium, France and my father’s father – an Irishman in South Africa – in German East Africa.
Saw the most brilliant play last night, Dad, set in the trenches of World War One. Can’t stop thinking about it.
They both survived, but their ordeals scarred them mentally and physically. I’d been transcribing my paternal grandad’s heartbreakingly detailed war diary and wanting somehow to pay a tribute to his extraordinary generation through theatre.
The birth of MESH Theatre
Then I had a ‘ding’ moment while observing a secondary school history class: was anyone doing Journey’s End in the battlefields? I jumped on a ferry and did my first recce of the area. There was no live theatre going on at all – it was a gap which urgently needed filling.
With no time to waste, we built a small but determined team and built our reputation as a provider of high-quality professional theatre, offering a direct line to lived experience of war. Journey’s End is our first production. MESH is an acronym of my four grandparents’ initials. The name arrived very quickly and resonated on several levels.
Bringing Journey’s End to the battlefields
It was just over a year from the first ‘ding’ moment to opening night on October 10th last year. We’ve been enabled and supported by tremendous generosity from veterans and the battlefields industry. Tourisme Ieper have kindly hosted us in the iconic Kruitmagazijn (Gunpowder Store) – a destination in itself, with its domed roof and 2 metre thick walls, a rare historic building in this entirely reconstructed town.
Over 1300 actors were submitted last year and even more this year, so we really have been spoilt for choice. Many actors wrote to us personally to express their passion for the project. If good directing really is 90 percent casting, we are onto another winner.
Our costumes and props are sourced from military experts Khaki Devil who take immense pride in historical accuracy. The East Surrey badges (from R.C. Sherriff’s beloved C Company) and all insignia are all bang-on. We aim to please the ghosts of Sherriff and his trench mates in our audience. We think they’d approve.
Opening night in Ypres
After months of preparations, it was suddenly opening night. The show received rave reviews in the press and across the Remembrance community. We knew it would be a powerful experience, but nothing prepared us for the impact. From war-weary tour guides to school girls, the response has been humbling.
Audience after audience gave standing ovations. People left in silence and wrote to us later to say they’d been too speechless to respond at the time. We are still receiving tributes on social media from people who saw it and have booked again.
Revisiting Journey’s End for 2018
It’s an absolute privilege to be bringing Journey’s End to life on the Armistice centenary. This truly is a once-in-a-lifetime moment and a shared experience, for audience and company alike. In the words of Telegraph theatre critic Dominic Cavendish:
“In the closing moments here Stanhope presses his forehead against Raleigh’s, a belated gesture of tenderness for the boy while all hell breaks loose above them in a simulated bombardment. It’s a parting shot that honours millions of acts of solidarity lost amid the tumult of that terrible war. It might sound like the height of extravagance to recommend crossing the Channel for a few hours of theatre, but it honestly feels like paying the bare-minimum tribute. See it, then, and weep.”’
Journey’s End will be performed at the Gunpowder Store in Ypres, Belgium from 10 October – 12 November 2018. You can find tickets from MESH Theatre or email tickets@meshtheatre.com for private bookings.
Featured image by Steve Edwin Photography.
