Credit: Richard Davenport
Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
It’s True, It’s True, It’s True is a gripping all-female three-hander examining the 1612 trial of Agostino Tassi, who was accused of rape by the talented artist Artemisia Gentileschi, who was allegedly only 15 when the attack happened.
Based on the original period transcripts from the trial, which have been translated from Italian and Latin, the cast speak in modern-day language. Gripping and charged, this is a courtroom drama that roars with feminist rage. Intelligently, this production awakens the events of a real-life 17th-century rape trial, and in doing so, exposes just how little society has changed over 400 years.
Always pushing boundaries and helping their audiences view the world differently, Breach Theatre are innovative, bright and refreshing theatre-makers. It’s True, It’s True, It’s True is performed by Kathryn Bond, Sophie Steer and Ellice Stevens. Wearing men’s attire, collars and cuffs, they give committed, passionate, and measured performances. The courtroom narrative is delivered in relay and interwoven with animated descriptions of some of Gentileschi’s paintings. Truly fascinating for a contemporary audience is the way that Gentileschi reflected her experience – the horror of her ordeal and her appetite for revenge – into her artwork.
The darkness is interspersed with moments of humour too. Tassi is laughable, a leering sleazy pest; archaic views of female sexuality become a great source of laughter for the audience. This is a remarkable and timely performance, a gripping and emotive narrative, which resonates powerfully – with a 21st-century audience – following the #MeToo movement.