In Southend-on-Sea, 1908, Princess Dinubolu of Senegal became the first woman of colour to enter a beauty pageant in the UK. Whether she was really royalty remains unknown, but playwright and actor Anne Odeke explores the possibilities presented by those historical gaps in Princess Essex.
Staged at the Globe, with Odeke playing the princess, imagined here as an orphaned local maid named Joanna, it’s an ensemble piece, with live band and a sense of pageantry fitting of its subject matter.
We arrive in Southend with the town poised to stage a beauty pageant to rival mortal enemies Folkestone, and save beloved entertainment venue the Kursaal from financial ruin in the process.
Joanna’s worldview is shaken when her mistress Mrs Bugle takes her to see the Great Batwa, in which a khaki-clad colonel presents a pygmy chief for the crowd’s entertainment. When Joanna goes to “save” Batwa, she finds his stage persona an act of exoticism for white crowds. As Joanna is confronted by racism in her quest to become a beauty queen, she mirrors Batwa, a new identity as a Senegalese princess offering smoother passage. As another character neatly pronounces: “We’re all just trying to survive.”
There’s a vaudevillian vibe to the show, beautiful Edwardian-meets-burlesque costumes, and ensemble musical numbers lightening the serious subject matter. There are moments of sparkling comic acting: from Odeke, Eloise Secker daintily scuttling about as beauty queen Violet, John Cummins as a bratty Edward VII. Alison Halstead is captivating not only as Batwa, but even in minor ensemble roles.
The central subject matter – historical and emotional – is compelling, so it’s frustrating when the story meanders into scenes that at times feel superfluous. A subplot about a suffragette maid, for example, isn’t given space to cohere with the whole. Despite the play’s length, we’re left with loose ends.
Joanna’s personal journey drives the narrative. She is self-possessed and idealistic from the start, talking back to her mistress, speaking up for Batwa – but we see her shed naivety as she comes to understand how others see her. Rather than letting us feel Joanna’s emotions, the play often declares them, but there’s weight in the message of what it means to be visible when you’re seen by others like you.
• Princess Essex is at the Shakespeare’s Globe, London, until 26 October
