''The Meaning of Zong'' is a play by

Giles Terera Giles Terera (born 14 December 1976) is a British actor, musician, and filmmaker. He is best known for his work in the theatre, particularly in the original cast of the London production of the musical ''Hamilton'', as Aaron Burr, for which ...

about the massacre on board the

slave ship Slave ships were large cargo ships specially built or converted from the 17th to the 19th century for transporting slaves. Such ships were also known as "Guineamen" because the trade involved human trafficking to and from the Guinea coast ...

''Zong'', its impact on the

anti-slavery movement Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

and its importance in the modern world. The play was first performed in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, England in 2022.

Setting

The main locations are a present-day bookshop,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Westminster Hall The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parli ...

in 1783, and the slave ship ''Zong'' sailing from

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...

to Jamaica in 1781.

Characters

Olaudah Equiano Olaudah Equiano (; c. 1745 – 31 March 1797), known for most of his life as Gustavus Vassa (), was a writer and abolitionist from, according to his memoir, the Eboe (Igbo) region of the Kingdom of Benin (today southern Nigeria). Enslaved as ...

, also known as Gustavus Vassa, a barber and abolitionist *

Granville Sharp Granville Sharp (10 November 1735 – 6 July 1813) was one of the first British campaigners for the abolition of the slave trade. He also involved himself in trying to correct other social injustices. Sharp formulated the plan to settle black ...

, a music teacher and abolitionist *

Ottobah Cugoano Ottobah Cugoano, also known as John Stuart (c. 1757 – after 1791), was an abolitionist, political activist, and natural rights philosopher from West Africa who was active in Britain in the latter half of the eighteenth century. Captured in th ...

, an abolitionist *Annie Greenwood, a teacher and shorthand writer *Ama, Riba and Joyi, women from West Africa who are enslaved on the Zong *James Kelsall,

first mate A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed mariner and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the ship ...

of the ''Zong'' *Robert Stubbs, a passenger on the ''Zong'' and former slave ship captain *William Woodfall, a publisher *

Lord Mansfield William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, PC, SL (2 March 170520 March 1793) was a British barrister, politician and judge noted for his reform of English law. Born to Scottish nobility, he was educated in Perth, Scotland, before moving to Lond ...

Lord Chief Justice Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

of Great Britain *Sir John Lee and Arthur Pigott, lawyers

Synopsis

The play opens with an argument about how to categorise a book on slavery. The

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

Olaudah Equiano connects this to the shocking story of the slave ship ''Zong'', whose crew threw 132 slaves overboard, ostensibly to avoid a water shortage, and whose owners then claimed insurance for their loss. When the insurers appeal, Equiano persuades the abolitionist movement to bring a criminal prosecution, documenting the insurance trial as evidence. Equiano feels an empathetic connection with the experience of three women enslaved aboard the ''Zong'', and in particular with the one who survived after being thrown into the sea. He is forced to confront his own personal journey, and in so doing brings the story back to the audience in the present day.

Interpretation

The play follows an African tradition of

storytelling Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own stories or narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural pre ...

, in which the writer and performer are one and the same and engage the audience directly. In the opening production, the writer Giles Terera played the part of Equiano, while the onstage musical director Sidiki Dembele used traditional instruments and involved both cast and audience. The play is based on actual historical events and draws on the records of the court case and the book written by Equiano, but it demonstrates their close connection to modern society, and counterbalances the courtroom drama by telling the story of the enslaved Africans, "a theatrical equivalent of the modern victim statement". Terera explained his aims:

I did so much research about this period, but these huge holes in history and our unwillingness to talk about this subject only adds to keeping this history invisible. So, for me, it was about finding a way to tell this story so that the audience could listen to it, hear it, see it, without fear.

Terera recognised the dramatic potential in a small detail in one of the documents concerning a person who was thrown overboard yet managed to grab a rope and pull themselves back onto the ship. "That's where I started, with that character, because that was someone I wanted to see a play about." Through inspirational characters, the play became "a story of our time, celebrating the power of the human spirit against adversity, and the journey of our past to understand our place in the world". As Equiano says in the play, "Why a thing happens is not the question, rather what we do when a thing happens."

Development

The play was commissioned by the

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...

and the National Theatre, and presented in a

staged reading A stage reading, also known as a staged reading, is a form of theatre without sets or full costumes. The actors, who read from scripts, may be seated, stand in fixed positions, or incorporate minimal stage movement. There is an overlap with t ...

in 2018. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, the planned 2020 production was reimagined as a radio play on

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

Productions

The play was first staged in April 2022 at the Bristol Old Vic, directed by Terera and Tom Morris, with an ensemble cast including Terera, and joined onstage by composer and musical director Sidiki Dembele. It toured to the

Royal Lyceum Theatre The Royal Lyceum Theatre is a 658-seat theatre in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, named after the Theatre Royal Lyceum and English Opera House, the residence at the time of legendary Shakespearean actor Henry Irving. It was built in 1883 by a ...

Edinburgh and the

Liverpool Playhouse The Liverpool Playhouse is a theatre in Williamson Square in the city of Liverpool, England. It originated in 1866 as a music hall, and in 1911 developed into a repertory theatre. As such it nurtured the early careers of many actors and actress ...

Critical reception

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' praised the "richly theatrical" production, which "refrains from didacticism and easy metaphors".

The Bristol Post The ''Bristol Post'' is a city/regional five-day-a-week (formerly appearing six days per week) newspaper covering news in the city of Bristol, including stories from the whole of Greater Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire. It was ...

described it as "a powerful story that feels particularly relevant right now." ''

The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until August 2004. Its par ...

'' praised the "magnificent shifting set", the ensemble cast and the onstage musical director. The ''Wirral Globe'' praised "teamwork of the highest order".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meaning of Zong, The 2022 plays British plays Plays about slavery Plays set in London Works set on ships