In the Seven Ages of Man speech from As You Like It, Shakespeare tracks the stages of life from infancy to the second childishness that comes with old age. This collection of short plays by Anthony Clark takes the phases as stimulus for seven scenes but maps them on to women of different classes and experiences. Together, they form an eloquent meditation on life, mortality and the passing of time, reflecting on the state of the world and our intrinsic desire to make it a better place.
Two actors, Safeena Ladha and Chenise Lynette, take on new roles in each story but She brings out humankind’s innate similarities as well as highlighting each individual’s unique path. In the first play (perhaps the least dynamic), we are introduced to a young, clinically depressed woman coming to terms with her new baby and its conception. Soon, we move on to a restaurant where two old school friends bicker, banter and bawl, in the hope of getting their own back on a waitress who once bullied them in the playground.
