Elephant – Bush Theatre, London

A review of Elephant, a deeply political, personal and musical work by Anoushka Lucas on at the Bush Theatre. Confronting and cathartic in all the right ways.

Elephant

Today’s work at the Bush Theatre was originally part of the Protest series in 2020 in response to the murder of George Floyd. Now it’s back and in person, part of the Bush’s 50th anniversary year. It’s no wonder, then, that this work by Anoushka Lucas is deeply politically engaged. Lucas is multi-talented: a singer, songwriter, actor, and theatre composer. Elephant is semi-autobiographical, the story of Lylah, an aspiring singer/songwriter of mixed heritage who discovers that society is not willing to hold up its end of the social contract. All her life she has worked hard, followed the rules, trimmed parts of herself to fit in. Is it enough? And what about the toll it takes?

I’ve seen a few monologues at the Bush now, including Overflow and Invisible. All have been quite powerful and personal. Invisible even shared similar themes, in a way. But none have been quite so musical. Elephant is described as “part gig, part piano lesson, part journey through Empire.” The piano on stage is ever-present as an instrument, a plot point and an object entwined with the history of colonialism. Lucas weaves songs into the story, showing off an impressive voice and tremendous songwriting talent. Given the story, which begins with a piano arriving at seven-year-old Lylah’s flat and ends with… well you’ll have to see for yourself, the musical insertions are a natural part of the play.

Where Is This Elephant Then?

So this is a story of a journey into songwriting. It’s also a story about identity. There are a lot of labels applied to Lylah. French. Working Class. Cameroonian. Ones I won’t repeat. Often, these labels reveal a person’s biases (unconscious at best, racist at worst). What they expect Lylah to be. She’s been good. She’s followed the rules. She learned this technique at school: the result should be that “everyone says you are special and good.” Somehow though, out in the world, it doesn’t work any more. Through conversations with offstage record label people, Lylah’s music is questioned, and through it her identity. Wouldn’t it be better if… If she spoke differently? If her songs were less ‘theatrical’ and more ‘soulful’? Or maybe she could collaborate with someone a bit more ‘urban’? A death of a thousand cuts of coded racism and othering.

The elephant is a metaphor. After all, an elephant has been present this whole time. Or part of its tusk, at least, in the form of piano keys. It’s a reminder of the way (White) society neatly packages up difficult histories in order to forget them. We lose everything that an elephant is, in order to gain a processed, sanitised, contained new thing, divorced from the bloody history of its production. Only not everyone can forget so easily. As Lylah says:

“My history and your history are the same history
And I am still battling against it
And I’m doing all the work
hiding the parts of myself that do not fit right
And I’m only just realising that is expected of me
because it’s in the interest
It has always been”

Anoushka Lucas, Elephant, Methuen Drama 2022

Final Thoughts On Elephant

What a lot of power, history and personal experience to bring to the stage in little over an hour. Jess Edwards, who has developed and directed Elephant, as well as dramaturgs Daniel Bailey and Deirdre O’Halloran prove a powerful creative team, working alongside Lucas to create a production that is like a coiled spring. This is rather cleverly done on stage. There are moments in the script which should be and are deeply uncomfortable. Almost imperceptibly at first, Lucas responds physically. After a while, our internal cringing as audience members is reflected back at us as squirming, writhing, hiding. When a release finally comes, in the form of Lylah speaking her truth, it’s truly a cathartic release.

My favourite reusable set by Georgia Wilmot, with lighting by Laura Howard, was also doing its usual good work to reflect the shifting moods of Elephant. Sound design by Bella Kear rounds out the music played by Lucas herself. It’s a strong creative team, and it shows.

Elephant is powerful, confronting and beautifully acted. Speaking of which, Lucas’s star is definitely on the rise so this is a good opportunity to see her in an intimate setting, telling her own story in her own words. It’s on in the Bush’s smaller Studio space for a couple of weeks, so don’t delay in getting tickets.

Salterton Arts Review’s rating: 4/5

Elephant on until 12 November 2022