9.49°C Sophia Duleep Singh – princess, suffragette, and revolutionary. It is an East Anglian story crying out to be told, and well done to Eastern Angles for bringing this inspiring woman to the stage and to a wider audience.
Her father was Maharaja Sir Duleep Singh, who lost his Sikh empire to the British Raj and was exiled to England. Living in Elveden Hall, Suffolk, she is a classic figure – one brought up with dual cultures, both of which often rejected her. She became most notorious as a suffragette, but as this play shows, she was much more than that. Her fight for identity comes across strongly, with bulletins by Oscar Weaver of the East India Office highlighting that the family was viewed as subversive and a threat to the “stabilised” order.
Hannah Kumari’s script has the challenge of condensing a great deal of history into a two-act play. At times, especially in the first half, the strokes are a little broad, with the play heavy in exposition and narrative, taking a while to find its focus. However, the cast burst onto the stage with great energy, ensuring the many scene changes were delivered smoothly and with some good characterisation.
Natasha Patel is an assured, passionate Sophia, drawing us into the story and performing with convincing exuberance. The other three actors – Moshana Khan, Sushant Shekar, and Harriet Sharmini Smithers – all multi-role. While some of their characters are convincing and interesting, others lack nuance, and a stronger distinction between characters is sometimes needed. This is mainly due to the challenge of four performers playing out a story of such great sweep and complexity, but they never lose sight of the central theme: the racism and challenges Sophia faced and how the search for identity still affects many people today.
One anomaly is that the outbreak of the First World War is signalled by the sound of an aeroplane, even though they weren’t part of warfare in 1914. The sound itself seems more fitting for the Second World War. Still, this moment highlights Sophia’s remarkable life – not just as a suffragette but as someone who volunteered as a nurse, raised funds for Indian soldiers sent to the front, and remained a persistent thorn in the side of authority. The possibility of love is also introduced, and the play ends – frustratingly – before that thread is resolved.
However, I learnt much about this aspect of local history, and the play confirms that global majority figures played their part in a far more complex historical tapestry than we are often led to believe.
On tour: Sophia – Eastern Angles Theatre Company
