'Girls' review — amid the horrors of this powerful play is a paean to female friendship

Read our review of Theresa Ikoko’s drama Girls, now in performances at the Young Vic to 21 November.

Summary

• Theresa Ikoko’s play Girls comes to the Young Vic
• It was written in response to Boko Haram's 2014 kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls
• Tara Tijani, Sewa Zamba and Hannah Akhalu are excellent as three best friends and captives
• Ewa Dina's ominous production pulls us into their world

At first, you think they’re just your average teenagers. Theresa Ikoko’s Girls opens with three best friends, no more than 14, chatting about their crushes and families, singing songs and insulting each other because, well, that’s just what teenage girls do. Except these three – Haleema, Ruhab and Tisana – aren’t living your average teenage lives. Abducted by an unnamed terrorist group, we meet them held captive in a camp in the Nigerian countryside, dreaming of going home.

Written in response to Boko Haram’s kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls from Chibok, Nigeria, in 2014, the play goes behind the headlines to imagine the day-to-day horrors of the girls’ existence. They live in fear of being beaten, question whether escape is possible, and must follow orders to get by. Then there’s the threat of being separated and shipped off to even worse camps. Directed by JMK Award winner Ewa Dina, the play sets the girls’ everyday teenage lingo against the brutality of their circumstances.

The three have been friends since childhood and feel almost like sisters. But they are vastly different, too. Haleema (Tara Tijani) is headstrong, wise, and the leader of the group. Ruhab (Sewa Zamba) is willing to comply to make life on the camp as easy as possible, while Tisana (Hannah Akhalu), the youngest, drifts off into a fantasy world, allowing herself to believe that returning to her family is still a possibility. When the three come together and are allowed to lean into their childish sides for just a second, the cast are a joy to watch.

The production does a good job of bringing the outside into the girls’ closed world. TV screens, lined up behind a mesh curtain, blast scenes of fire and bombs, alongside news updates. Each time, the effect is shocking. Munotida Chinyanga’s sound design has mosquitos buzzing like an inescapable threat, while ominous music underscores the drama – there’s the sense that we’re constantly waiting for the next terror to arrive. With audience members seated around the edge of the stage and the theatre regularly plunged into jolting blackouts, Dina pulls us into the girls’ constantly on edge minds.

Running at just under two hours without an interval, however, the play starts to feel repetitive. Conversations about how best to survive the terrorist group’s demands strain the girls’ friendships, as we watch them grow from children into adults before their time. Shame makes them question their decisions. Will Ruhab’s family even want her back now that she’s married one of the men in the camp? Would Tisana’s father ever speak to her again if she joined in with the daily prayers, like the others?

It’s depressing and difficult to watch from start to finish, but the power of female friendship shines through even in the worst of circumstances. These girls, whatever ripples between them, always have each other’s backs.

Girls is at the Young Vic to 21 November. Book Girls tickets on LondonTheatre.co.uk

Photo credit: Girls (Photos by Helen Murray)