PET PET
  • My Account
  • Subscribe
Become a Friend Donate
  • About Us
    • People
    • Press Office
    • Our History
  • Get Involved
    • Become a Friend of PET
    • Volunteer
    • Campaigns
    • Writing Scheme
    • Partnership and Sponsorship
    • Advertise with Us
  • Donate
    • Become a Friend of PET
  • BioNews
    • News
    • Comment
    • Reviews
    • Elsewhere
    • Topics
    • Glossary
    • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Previous Events
  • Engagement
    • Policy and Projects
      • Resources
    • Education
  • Jobs & Opportunities
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
    • People
    • Press Office
    • Our History
  • Get Involved
    • Become a Friend of PET
    • Volunteer
    • Campaigns
    • Writing Scheme
    • Partnership and Sponsorship
    • Advertise with Us
  • Donate
    • Become a Friend of PET
  • BioNews
    • News
    • Comment
    • Reviews
    • Elsewhere
    • Topics
    • Glossary
    • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Previous Events
  • Engagement
    • Policy and Projects
      • Resources
    • Education
  • Jobs & Opportunities
  • Contact Us
  • My Account
  • Subscribe
  • Privacy Statement
  • Advertising Policy
  • Thanks and Acknowledgements
PETBioNewsReviewsTheatre Review: Of Kith and Kin, Bush Theatre

BioNews

Theatre Review: Of Kith and Kin, Bush Theatre

Published 4 December 2017 posted in Reviews and appears in BioNews 929

Author

Jen Willows

Legal Editor
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis

Of Kith and Kin is a play about surrogacy that seems to have very little to say about surrogacy...

Of Kith and Kin is a play about surrogacy that seems to have little to say about surrogacy.

Daniel and Oli are a married couple. Daniel is in his mid-40s and Oli in his early 30s. As the play opens the couple are at home, having a 'baby shower' with their dear friend and surrogate Priya who is a few weeks from her due date. The couple are drinking and there is a lot of silliness and laughter.

We learn that Priya introduced the couple. She has her own teenage son and has previously acted as surrogate for her sister – 'I gave birth, she went straight into my sister's arms and we all held each other and, do you know what? I've never been so sure of anything in my life.'

Daniel's mother Lydia turns up unannounced and there is obvious tension between her and Oli, partly because of past slights and class differences but more obviously because Oli holds her responsible for his husband's abusive childhood and subsequent issues. Rather drunk, Oli refuses to ignore Lydia's barbed comments and criticises her openly for the fact that she was a bad mother – something he and Daniel have obviously discussed privately, but that Daniel is not comfortable raising with his mother.

An argument escalates and ends up with Daniel pinning Oli on the sofa, as Priya looks on, realising she has gone into labour.

The second act was, for me, the weak point. It takes place in the courtroom, as we discover Priya did not hand over the baby after the birth, but instead went to stay with her family in Manchester, taking the child.

The magistrate was wonderfully entertaining but her lines seemed more in keeping with a US court drama than a family court in the UK. I feel quite sure that no member of the British judiciary has ever described themselves as 'the mother of all end-of-level baddies' during child custody proceedings.

Daniel allows himself to be riled by Priya's lawyer Ms Kerr's questions and ends up calling her a 'butch ball breaker', swearing at Priya, and having a meltdown: 'Because I will not stand here and be subjected to this prurient and ugly examination of my life, and have intimate details about my family gouged out from me and picked at in this obscene way, because I will tell you something: that's abuse.'

Not only would this sort of behaviour be unlikely to be tolerated in court, but it is made all the more unbelievable by the fact that Daniel is supposedly an experienced solicitor. Daniel's choice to represent himself in such an emotionally charged hearing felt unrealistic. As a legal professional he would certainly have the knowledge to do so, but would surely have the experience to recognise that having a cool-headed counsel who is able to remain objective would be of benefit. Furthermore, Daniel makes a point of telling the court how much wealthier he and Oli are than Priya, so affording representation should not be a problem.

Ultimately the scene compromised believability for the sake of drama, and in doing so lost an opportunity to make a valuable point about how many parents are having to self-represent in court following legal aid cuts in recent years. Daniel's indignation at the questions being asked of him, and his emotionally charged outburst would all feel more authentic coming from a dad who feels at sea in the legal system.

The final act, back in Daniel and Oli's flat, sees the couple address the roots of their differences, and some difficult truths come out. The conversation between the couple in the first half of this act is where Chris Thompson's script really shines. The couple have not fallen out of love, but we see the gulf between their perspectives and their expectations of one another. It is tenderly written and moving. 

The performances were of a good standard. Daniel (James Lance) has the showiest part and felt a little heavy-handed at times. Joanna Bacon was excellent in her dual role as Daniel's infuriating mother and Priya's tenacious lawyer. Chetna Pandya as Priya and Joshua Silver as Oli were both wonderfully natural and relatable, and gently heart-wrenching in the final act.

After the play concluded I wanted to know so much more about Priya. We understand Priya's motives to become a surrogate, but we never hear her reasons for deciding to take the baby after the birth. Although we see the altercation that she sees, her thought process is never explained, as her lawyer does all the talking during the courtroom scene.

Despite bringing the couple together, performing their civil partnership and marriage and bearing their child, ultimately Priya is a narrative means-to-an-end. Her feelings and motivations are sidelined as unimportant to the central narrative of Daniel and Oli's relationship. Perhaps the play does have something to say about surrogacy after all.

Related Articles

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
Reviews
19 March 2018 • 3 minutes read

Theatre Review: Stuffed

by Sarah Norcross

Much as I love a laugh and a joke, 'Stuffed', billed as a comedy about fertility and IVF, seemed to me to have the potential of being insensitive and in poor taste - would I and the audience see the funny side?

Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
News
26 February 2018 • 2 minutes read

Surrogate sues clinic for using embryos without consent

by Theofanis Michailidis

A woman who acted as a surrogate for friends has sued the fertility clinic where they were treated, after it transferred one of the unused embryos made using her eggs to impregnate the same couple, without her consent...

Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
News
26 February 2018 • 2 minutes read

'Baby-factory' father wins custody of 13 children born via surrogacy

by Dr Antony Starza-Allen

A court in Thailand has awarded a Japanese man paternity rights over 13 children born through surrogacy, meaning that can now apply for custody of them...

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
Reviews
5 February 2018 • 4 minutes read

Radio Review: Surrogacy in The Archers

by Olivia Montuschi

For some unknown reason rooted in the mists of time I am addicted to The Archers, the not-so-everyday story of country folk that has been running on Radio 4 at 7pm every day except Saturday pretty much for ever...

Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
News
18 December 2017 • 1 minute read

US Congress lawmaker resigns amid surrogacy scandal

by Seán Byrne

Congressman Trent Franks has resigned from the US House of Representatives, following claims of misconduct related to pursuing a surrogacy arrangement with a former staffer...

Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Reviews
2 October 2017 • 3 minutes read

Podcast Review: 'The Why Factor: Surrogacy' BBC World Service

by Melissa Elsworth

Why would a woman choose to carry a baby for another person? Should money be involved? Does surrogacy exploit vulnerable women? And what other ethical issues are involved in the surrogacy process?...

Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
News
18 September 2017 • 2 minutes read

Gay couple denied surrogacy challenges Utah law

by Sarah Pritchard

A married gay male couple in Utah is challenging the state's law that says couples need to prove that a woman is unable to have children before turning to surrogacy...

Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Comment
12 September 2017 • 4 minutes read

Scandinavian attitudes to surrogacy — public policy should catch up

by Sam Everingham

During the planning of the global non-profit Families Through Surrogacy's first educational event on surrogacy in Sweden a few months ago, IVF professionals had suggested inviting a few leading Swedish infertility specialists. Unfortunately none were will

Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Reviews
29 August 2017 • 4 minutes read

Theatre Review: Bodies, Royal Court Theatre

by Jen Willows

At the opening of the play, couple Clem and Josh have decided to pursue surrogacy after suffering multiple miscarriages. We find out that the egg will come from a Russian donor, be fertilised with Josh's sperm, and then implanted in an Indian surrogate...

Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Image by Dr Christina Weis. © Christina Weis
Comment
24 July 2017 • 5 minutes read

What The Handmaid's Tale has taught me about surrogacy

by Natalie Gamble

As a supporter of surrogacy, I expected the television adaptation of The Handmaid's Tale to be uncomfortable viewing. Margaret Atwood's chilling dystopian novel is well known for being the ultimate warning against surrogacy...

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

« TV Review: Inside Out London - Eggs on ice

Data-Label The UK's Leading Supplier Of Medical Labels & Asset Labels

RetiringDentist.co.uk The UK's Leading M&A Company.

Find out how you can advertise here
easyfundraising
amazon

This month in BioNews

  • Popular
  • Recent
1 August 2022 • 3 minutes read

Podcast Review: Stories of Our Times – IVF, fraud and 'unwanted' children

25 July 2022 • 4 minutes read

TV Review: DNA Family Secrets – series two, episode six

18 July 2022 • 4 minutes read

TV Review: Spotlight – The babymaker uncovered

4 July 2022 • 3 minutes read

Podcast Review: Biohacked Family Secrets – The birth of the sperm bank

20 June 2022 • 5 minutes read

Documentary Review: Our Father

8 August 2022 • 4 minutes read

Podcast Review: Babbage – Editing the code of life

1 August 2022 • 3 minutes read

Podcast Review: Stories of Our Times – IVF, fraud and 'unwanted' children

25 July 2022 • 4 minutes read

TV Review: DNA Family Secrets – series two, episode six

18 July 2022 • 4 minutes read

TV Review: Spotlight – The babymaker uncovered

11 July 2022 • 4 minutes read

TV Review: DNA Family Secrets – series two, episode three

Subscribe to BioNews and other PET updates for free.

Subscribe
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • RSS
Wellcome
Website redevelopment supported by Wellcome.

Website by Impact Media Impact Media

  • Privacy Statement
  • Advertising Policy
  • Thanks and Acknowledgements

© 1992 - 2022 Progress Educational Trust. All rights reserved.

Limited company registered in England and Wales no 07405980 • Registered charity no 1139856

Subscribe to BioNews and other PET updates for free.

Subscribe
PET PET

PET is an independent charity that improves choices for people affected by infertility and genetic conditions.

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • RSS
Wellcome
Website redevelopment supported by Wellcome.

Navigation

  • About Us
  • Get Involved
  • Donate
  • BioNews
  • Events
  • Engagement
  • Jobs & Opportunities
  • Contact Us

BioNews

  • News
  • Comment
  • Reviews
  • Elsewhere
  • Topics
  • Glossary
  • Newsletters

Other

  • My Account
  • Subscribe

Website by Impact Media Impact Media

  • Privacy Statement
  • Advertising Policy
  • Thanks and Acknowledgements

© 1992 - 2022 Progress Educational Trust. All rights reserved.

Limited company registered in England and Wales no 07405980 • Registered charity no 1139856