Review: Slave – A Question of Freedom at The Lowry cleverly spotlights a powerful human story

Slave – A Question of Freedom tells the hard-hitting true story of Mende Nazer, who explores her dark experience with modern-day slavery with the play beginning in Sudan’s Nuba Mountains during the mid-90s until moving to London in the 2000s.

The play is brought together by an ensemble of nine brilliant cast members, each adapting into different characters throughout the show and delivering an incredible performance.

Composer Carol Donaldson, brings a warmer feel during the beginning of the show, with the characters in Nuba Mountains singing harmoniously in their community.

The joyous start turns drastically and Mende’s childhood takes a horrific turn. Cleverly spotlighting a powerful human story, Donaldson reflects this through the sound, simplifying and often only hearing one string instrument.

Tracey Gibbs’ focus on lighting creates a wide spotlight on the centre of the stage to grasp the audience’s attention.

It is impressive to see the use of lighting, especially when certain characters are not in the scenes. Instead of leaving the stage, they remain in the shadows, still visible to the audience even in the darkness.

Although all of the actors give fantastic performances, one individual who stands out is Yolanda Ovide, who plays Mende.

Yolanda gives the real Mende Nazer justice with her convincing performance on the stage. Her rendition of Mende’s left many people in the audience both in tears and stiff from the shock of the story.

Another mention is to Mohand Abdalrahem for his role as Elder and Mende’s Spirit Guide, as his expressive performance is powerful and he adapts well to a range of characters.

The frightening character of Rahab, who is played by Sara Faraj, creates an eerie atmosphere with her aggressive language and her repetition of calling Mende a slave which escalates.

Sara Faraj depicts Rabat as a senseless individual, leaving the audience feeling resentment towards her as I did notice frustration in people’s faces.

The pace of the play is quite slow, understandably as I can imagine director/producer, Caroline Clegg, did not want to miss out on crucial details.

Throughout the play, there was silence instilled in the audience, likely because the whole play is difficult to digest.

Slave may be distressing to some as they mention some violence, sexual assault and slavery, however, it also depicts the reality of what is still happening in the present day, making it an important subject to discuss.

The demographic for this play would be 16+ considering the themes.

Slave – A Question of Freedom is at The Lowry until 12 October 2024 and tickets can be purchased here