The Witch and The Whistleblower
The Witch and The Whistleblower is a brand new musical following the true story of Margaret Aitken, a figure of the Great Scottish Witchcraft Panic of 1597. Aitken was accused of witchcraft and to avoid execution she offered to aid in identifying witches, until eventually she is exposed.
The story follows the final town on Aitken and the church’s witch-hunt, where the town stands up against the false trials.
What I liked
There was a lot to like in this show! The acting was great, the music was lovely, and the writing was compelling. Dan Davison had a very powerful presence as minister John Cowper, and I really enjoyed Megan Farquhar as the witch Margaret, especially the choices of physicality in her performance. I also absolutely loved the addition of live instruments from some of the actors, Meg Russon on guitar and Polly Maltby on flute. Overall the cast was very strong, but I also want to shout out the multirolling work from Jonty O’Callaghan and Meg Russon, as their performances were a highlight, bringing a bit of comedy in, even in their smaller roles.
I really enjoyed the folksy music vibe of the whole show, with beautiful harmonies and some very haunting melodies.
The venue worked into the show’s favor as well, as the underground cellar gave the themes of secrecy a more intense and intimate feeling. I think the direction used the space very well, and clear effort was put into including all sides of the audience in the small space.
What wasn’t my favourite
The story has a compelling foundation but is a bit lacking in message otherwise. Ultimately exploring the “there were no witches” viewpoint, but criticizes all sides of the story: the priest is cruel for weaponising God, the witch is cruel for sacrificing others to save herself, and the resistance is cruel for revealing the witch’s ruse and condemning her to death too. There is no further exploration of who was most commonly accused, how the community is affected by the accusations, how religion is wrongfully exploited, or any specific character studies - I would have loved to see more of the witch’s morals and choices but she was a reasonably inactive character overall.
Overall
This was a very enjoyable show with great performances, and though it may not have a strong overarching message it is a wonderful new work! I would be very intrigued to see it further developed.
