Writer: Sophie Swithinbank
Director: Nancy Medina
The barn-like space of the Young Vic’s Maria Theatre looks spectacular, transformed into an archive where documents stored in boxes on shelves tell stories of British witchcraft and witch-hunts. It’s Ash’s first day at the archive – which she pronounces as ‘Ar-chive, much to her boss’s consternation – and she’s still in her clubbing clothes, her red bra clearly visible through her transparent shirt. Lily at first believes that the agency might have sent the wrong person. It’s an engaging start to Sophie Swithinbank’s Sting.
However, Ash is the right person, and she is a post-doc who knows an awful lot about how and why women in history were accused of witchcraft. She lists off what were believed to be the tell-tale signs of witches, such as marks on the body and the use of animals to carry out their desires. Ash has bruises on her body, and her boyfriend, Dom, has just bought her a pet rabbit, whom she calls Pan. Could Ash be a modern-day witch, or is she a victim of domestic abuse?
This story could be enough to fill the 90-minute running time, but added to the mix is another plot concerning a possible serial killer, staging his murders in ways similar to historical executions of witches. As she is an expert on such matters, Lily is asked by the police to help. However, it’s a plot that is discarded by the end, purposely so, Swithinbank notes in the programme, to highlight how many murders of women go unsolved. The ideas about femicide, witchcraft, coercive control, and abuse of authority within the police force are all important ones, but they struggle to fully coalesce in this Gothic horror.
With lots of dry ice and red lights, Debbie Duru’s set, staged in transverse, works well as both the archive and Ash’s flat, which she shares with Dom. There is a terrifying shower scene played behind glass, and Nicola T. Chang’s sound design keeps the tension high. Ryan Day’s lighting design intensifies the eeriness and implied violence.
Adelle Leonce is captivating as the quirky Ash, her wisecracks protecting her inner world of hurt. The other two characters are more one-dimensionally drawn, especially that of Dom (Nick Blood), who reveals his dark side a little too early in the play. Phoebe Ladenburg is Lily, the slightly frumpy academic in her pom pom slippers. She’s only given the lightest of backstories, but her attraction to Ash is nicely understated.
Perhaps the title of the show gives the game away, and Swithinbank’s play doesn’t quite sting as it could. However, as a modern Gothic exploring gender issues, it works very well.
Runs until 18 July 2026
