THE WINSLOW Boy by Terrence Rattigan opens this week at Wokingham Theatre.
Based on a true story, it’s a tense courtroom drama about a young man accused of a theft he denies.
The real court case, eagerly followed by Edwardians, involved the struggles of a father to prove his young son’s innocence.
The Archer-Shee case of 1908-1910 involved naval cadet George Archer-Shee, who was accused of stealing a postal order.
His father used a legal challenge known as a ‘petition of right’ to bring the matter to court against the Crown.
The case became a matter of public fascination as the courtroom drama played out.
“There has never been another case like it in legal history,” said director Jenny Brown.
“Terence Rattigan was a collector of famous court cases, and he used to have soirees with his glamorous friends and associates, where he would act them out.
“Being debonair, suave, handsome and elegant, he always took the lead, of course.
“At one of the events he was challenged by a friend to write a play about the Archer-Shee case.”
Starting with just what he read about the boy, the barrister, and the court case, Rattigan began adding further characters to help develop the court action, setting the play in the fictional Winslow family’s home.
The play’s power, explained Jenny, comes from what is implied and unspoken.
“Today if someone upsets you, you are likely to know,” she said.
“They’ll probably tell you.”
“But in the 1900s feelings were conveyed through a look, a hand gesture – even the wave of a fan.
“Rattigan’s plays have an enduring quality that reflect hidden depths of pain in his characters, and in The Winslow Boy we see echoes of Rattigan’s own personal torment.
“So much emotion in the play is internalised, and I’ve tried to convey that restraint.
“It’s moving and it’s such clever writing.”
Important to Jenny, and to the play, is a sense of the ‘Petition of Right’, a legal term that still stands in Law today.
“In this day and age everyone is talking, but we’re not all listening,” she said.
“Everyone should have the right to be heard.
“That is what I hope audiences will take away from The Winslow Boy.”
The play can be seen at Wokingham Theatre from Wednesday, October 15 through to Saturday, October 25, with the exception of Sunday.
The bar is open each evening at 7pm, with curtain up at 7.45pm.
Tickets cost £16, and can be purchased from: https://www.wokinghamtheatre.org.uk/
