Doncaster writer and actor Hannah Morley’s new play, We Could All Be Perfect, has been commissioned, developed and produced by Sheffield Theatres and will be performed in its intimate and flexible Playhouse.
The cast includes: Anshula Bain, Heather Forster, Rosa Hesmondhalgh, Alice Walker, and Jada-Li Warrican, all performing as cast, and who all make their Sheffield Theatres debut with We Could All Be Perfect.
We Could All Be Perfect runs at the Tanya Moiseiwitsch Playhouse , Sheffield Saturday 23 September – Saturday 14 October 2023.
We Could All Be Perfect is coming to Sheffield Playhouse, what can you tell us about your new play?
We Could All Be Perfect is a rollercoaster ride through teenage girlhood, but perhaps not in a way you might expect. There are dozens of scenes, set all over the world, both now and through history… and perhaps a little bit into the future too. It’s all about the link between teenage girls and revolutions, whether those be tiny personal ones or global political ones. It’s fast-paced, funny, and a little bit violent and dangerous too.
What inspired you to write it?
I’d been wanting to write about teen girls for ages because I love the rhythm of their speech, but also how they somehow manage to be simultaneously brilliant, terrifying and very, very funny. I’d never quite found the idea until I started thinking about teenage girls as figureheads for revolution.
Turn on the news, scroll through TikTok, or open any history book and wherever there’s a revolution or a call for change, there’s normally a teenage girl visible near the centre of it. I was really interested in exploring why that might be and what unique set of skills teenage girls have (and have always had since the beginning of time) that might make them particularly qualified as revolutionaries.
One of my memories of being that age is an intensity of feeling. Everything feels life or death. The start of everything or the end of the world. Sometimes, when I look at the world today, I wonder if teenage girls are the only ones feeling an appropriate amount.
What did you find to be most difficult about writing it?
It became a bit of a running joke that every time I handed in a new draft of this play, I’d added an unhinged number of new scenes. I could honestly keep happily adding them until the eventual heat death of the universe. But nobody needs to see the five-hour version of this play, so our brilliant director Ruby Clarke and dramaturg Grace Gummer kept me focussed.
The shape of the play doesn’t look so much like a traditional night at the theatre. It’s not a conventional narrative following one set of characters (although there may be a couple of surprises along those lines), so the nature of having loads of kaleidoscopic scenes means it’s more like listening to an album or scrolling through social media.
There was a period where I tried to organise the play into something simpler and more logical, but in the end, we realised it’s probably best to let it be complicated and messy and full of big shifts in emotion… just like being fifteen.
How does it feel to be working with Sheffield Theatres?
It’s incredibly special to be working with Sheffield Theatres, particularly for my debut play. The space where We Could All Be Perfect is being performed is where I first saw new writing as a teenager and fell in love with it, so it feels like a real homecoming. Sheffield also has an incredible track record with new writing and I really love the work they make. I also appreciate that it was probably a bit of a risk commissioning a first play right after a global pandemic! I’m very grateful for their faith. Dream come true.
Tell us a little about the cast who will be bringing your characters to life?
They’re completely brilliant, first of all. One of the great things about casting the play was that, because the actors are playing so many parts, we didn’t really have to prioritise matching actors to specific characters, we just found five amazing actors and let them loose. It felt a bit like assembling a team of superheroes.
Between the five of them they play all genders, ages and personalities. They’re incredibly versatile and funny and each bring their own unique energy to the stage. It’s also been lovely to see them bond and become a real unit through the rehearsal process. And for some of them it’s their first professional theatre job, which is really special. If you want to see the stars of tomorrow right at the beginning of their careers, keep an eye on this five.
What would you say to anyone thinking of booking to see We Could All Be Perfect?
If you’re a teenage girl, this play is for you. But if you’ve ever been a teenage girl, or known one, or been irritated by one, or if you’re interested in how we might make the world better, then it’s for you too.
And if none of this has sold you… you should come for the dance routine. Seriously.
