The Village Where No One Suffers at Jack Studio Theatre 24 – 28 February 2026
‘a very worthy recognition of Ukrainian fortitude and resilience, and a good metaphor for the motive power behind their resistance’ ★★★★
Four years ago almost to the day, if we ignore the annexation of the Crimea some years earlier, Vladimir Putin sent a huge army into Ukraine to force the ceding of large tracts of territory. Since then, Ukrainians have been engaged in a hugely costly defence of their nation. Ukrainian playwright Polina Polozhentseva has written a short play that acknowledges this anniversary, on stage at the Jack Studio in Brockley until Saturday 28th February.
When the Russians invaded, Lukyana did a runner from Ukraine, going to Poland where she could love whoever she liked, eat whatever she wanted, and not get bombed or shot or drafted. Then her granny who had brought her up, dies, and bequeaths Lukyana her little house in an idyllic village untouched by conflict, on the proviso that she lives there for one month.
The contemporary resonances take a back seat for a while, when the next door neighbour Aunt Valya (played with enormous bouncy warmth by Nailah S. Cumberbatch) reveals that her granny was a Wise Woman, a Village Whisperer, who had used her gifts to keep her corner of her native soil safe from outside interference. Lukyana, modern woman that she is, has no truck with this superstitious nonsense, and invites her Ukrainian ex to come for no strings sex, all the while chatting with her Polish fiancé on her mobile phone.
This is the set-up for a very effective contemporary folk tale. The voiced offstage boyfriend is caring and concerned, the Ukrainian ex (played with masterly precision by the doubtless lovely Christopher Watson) is an unredeemed twerp, and seems like a sufficient reason to head back across the border all on his own.
The story is the growth of acceptance by Lukyana that her granny did indeed have gifts, and she may have them too, and she owes it to her home soil to protect it. There’s magic at work under the realistic shell, and Lukyana’s developing acceptance is beautifully traced by Sofia Natoli.
Folk tales have a peculiar resonance, and may hold more power in Central Europe than they do in the unsentimental west, but this excellent company makes it work. It’s a very worthy recognition of Ukrainian fortitude and resilience, and a good metaphor for the motive power behind their resistance. Their country matters to them. The play has ended, but it amply repays a trip to the Brockley Jack should it get another run.
Keep in touch with the company: Instagram @thevillagewherenoonsuffers
Sofia Natoli as Lukyana
Nailah S. Cumberbatch as Aunt Valya
Christopher Watson as Pasha
Directed by Valery Reva
Written by Polina Polozhentseva
