Francesca Zoutewelle plays Janey in the UK tour of Iman Qureshi’s The Funeral Director – winner of the Papatango 10th annual New Writing Prize which premiered at Southwark Playhouse last year and is now embarking on a UK tour from March.
You’re appearing in The UK Tour of The Funeral Director, what can you tell us about it?
It’s set in a Muslim Funeral Parlour centring around the character of Ayesha, who runs the business with her husband Zeyd. Her world is thrown into disarray when the couple turn away the custom of a young gay man looking to bury his boyfriend. As the action unfolds, the play brings about questions of religion and sexuality, and how the two can exist side by side.
How would you describe the character you play?
On the surface, Janey is a confident and resilient young woman who feels she has made a life for herself in London, leaving her small town behind her. Yet life finds a way of guiding her back to her roots and the past that she’s ran away from; there are scars from her youth that never fully healed. There is a lot for her that has been left unsaid.
What are the challenges or opportunities of joining the cast from Southwark Playhouse?
Well, we only have a short rehearsal process to explore something that is rich with possibility and debate, so there’s a challenge in the pace of our exploration. But to be honest, to join a production which has been on stage only recently means you feel like you’re jumping in at pretty exciting stage of development – it is still very alive for everyone and you have the backing of what worked before, what didn’t, and where do we want to take it now…
The Funeral Director won the Papatango New Writing Prize, what do you like most about Iman Qureshi’s writing?
I think it is tackling something that I’ve not seen before on stage. It has a very personal plight at its heart. You cannot help but be moved by that. I also love the characters. Their contradictions, their struggles. They are very human.
What are you most looking forward to about being out on tour?
I think it is a story which will have a lot of resonance in communities outside of London. I’m looking forward to seeing how it plays and what impact it has. That’s the great thing about tours, each audience changes the play, and each place you go receives it slightly differently.
What would you say to anyone thinking of coming to see The Funeral Director?
No need to think too much, just get yourself a ticket and you can do any thinking after. It’s a play which is extremely current and is well worth a watch!
