Author, Composer, Soldier-of-a-sort (Willow Studio at Greenside @ Riddles Court) is “A celebration of the enduring friendship between Ivor Gurney and Marion Scott.” The title is intriguing, and the description on the flyer drew me in. Who are—or were—these people, and what was their story? I assumed—rightly—that the backdrop would be the Great War and also that it might be about unrequited love or love cut short through a heroic death. I also assumed it would be about music and poetry. I was almost right.
Author, Composer, Soldier-of-a-sort is, for sure, a passion piece, and although it’s about a lot of the themes I expected, it’s actually the story of a long-held platonic friendship and tells the story of both Gurney and Scott. It’s about love and passion, but the passion is for words and music. It’s about the futility of war and the devastating impact of untimely deaths and being gassed. It’s about women’s rights and Scott fighting for them. Though we may not have heard of them before, Gurney and Scott’s stories have a familiar ring.
Jan Carey both wrote and performs this piece, with a quiet, refined accent for Scott and a lovely Gloucestershire burr for Gurney. Gurney came to life more for me, though Scott’s determination to ensure women were equally represented in a male-dominated workplace was passionately obvious.
The show is simply staged—just a table and chair with a table lamp, with the latter being used for effect occasionally. There was one staging surprise (no spoiler!), brilliantly employed. There is occasional music. It sets the scene initially (though perhaps for a little too long for my liking) and is used intermittently to highlight parts of the story. And extracts from Gurney’s written work also help the audience to understand the character of the man.
Author, Composer, Soldier-of-a-sort is intriguing, informative, and understated. The performance was word-perfect: this is not its debut. Its quiet gentility is in sharp contrast to the hustle and bustle of Edinburgh during the Fringe and will suit those who crave that and will likely send them back out into the world with a lot to think about—but quietly.
