Mother Courage and her Children
The Globe, London
★★★★★
 

REGARDED by many critics as the greatest play of the 20th century, Mother Courage and Her Children explodes triumphantly on to the Globe stage in a glorious production by Elle While that fully justifies its abiding reputation.  

Written by Bertolt Brecht in 1939, the work was originally set three centuries earlier in the Thirty Years War. What While reminds us of, in this bang-up-to-date version by Anna Jordan, is that a masterpiece transcends time and speaks to every generation anew.

And it’s a production that uses theatricality in all its forms to harness our senses and immerse us in life on the ground today in what is probably Ukraine.

Brecht is famed for his “alienation” technique whereby he denies the audience emotional involvement and forces them to focus on the cerebral and political revelations of his work. Here, however, director and cast speak straight to our hearts with all the depth and integrity of a Shakespeare but without jeopardising Brecht’s style or intellectual purpose.

Dialogue is punctuated by song and fractured action, in true Brecht style, but we join Mother Courage’s journey through a war-torn land with full compassion. And as she loses each of her three children one by one, in ghastly, war-driven circumstances, the shock is palpable.  

Michelle Terry’s Courage is a definitive, deeply moving performance. With her exuberant red hair and unstoppable life force, she fills the stage with purpose, personifying the noble cause of survival and resistance that symbolises hope for the downtrodden the world over.

With never a hint of sentimentality and stacks of humour, she takes us through her bitter struggle against starvation with never a pause for self-doubt, her mission as a lone mother exemplifying the most urgent and admirable of all human endeavours. Terry, who plays Mother Courage, is also artistic director of the Globe.  

And the play triumphs in its energy. James Maloney’s live music, under the skilled direction of Zac Gvi, adds a cabaret tone to the action, the cool jazz pierced at disconcerting points by sudden alarming gunshots that assert reality. The characters,  meanwhile, move around the stage as if in panto, yet constantly creating sequences and tableaux that emblazon themselves on the memory: Mother Courage hauling her iconic cart, for instance, surrounded by a wild and wonderful array of ragbags in brilliantly inventive costumes singing and capering along. It’s a celebration of life as existential experience and a victory cry for the oppressed.

The songs are real showstoppers at times, with the refrain “stagger up and carry on” a running theme, and sex worker Yvette’s Fraternisation Song performed with humour and irony by Nadine Higgin.

And the cast truly fill their environment — not easy in an open-air theatre with high sky above and no microphones. Designer takis brings us a gloriously dishevelled set, the gulf between the main stage and the apron serving uncompromisingly as casual oubliette, general hell hole and horrifying mass grave all in one go.

What singles the play out above all else, though, is its capture of the unadulterated voice of the powerless. No politicians, no journalists, no rich tycoons, no army officers, no influencers, no literary giants, no privileged punters contribute a word, though their presence always threatens from the shadowlands of power: recruiting soldiers, waging war, making self-serving deals, equipping soldiers with inadequate artillery… and so on. All without care.  

Mother Courage has no illusions: she knows what it means to be duped. If her sons enlist as soldiers they will die; if her daughter smiles and flirts with men, she will be abused. No-one in power cares so chaos and criminality flourish, while unfettered private enterprise (selling knock-off shirts or burgers or bodies for sex) preserves a life of sorts. Even the minister (Ferdy Roberts) finds his faith a losing game.

But it’s not depressing. Something of the resilience and collective resistance of the human spirit survives and brings joy. And Mother Courage, of course, simply staggers up and carries on.

This play is exhilarating in its truth, originality, bravery and sheer theatrical prowess.  

And yes, Bertolt Brecht, we certainly come away thinking!

Runs until June 27. Box office: (020) 7401-9919, shakespearesglobe.com.