Chopped Liver and Unions is the latest production from Blue Fire Theatre, who specialise in telling stories of women from history who have generally been either forgotten, or overlooked within popular culture.
This piece concerns Sara Wesker, played by Lottie Walker, who was instrumental in the fight for equal pay for women. She also led the fight to challenge the slum conditions and overcrowding of east London, where she lived for the majority of her life.
Here, Lottie is in her later years, relating to us the story of her life. It is absolutely fascinating. It’s also an important reminder that vital social change almost always has to be preceded by direct action, and sometimes violence. Very few of the rights we now take for granted have been given without a fight.
Indeed, Wesker’s fight for equal pay may have been successful within the specific parameters she was fighting for, but this is still an issue which does not extend to all workers in all jobs.
Wesker was at the forefront of the women’s trade union movement. Strike action begun by the Matchgirls’s Strike, as referenced in the film Enola Holmes 2, was continued under Wesker’s leadership of various machinist’s and tailoring unions. The changes being sought were the primary feature of the strike by the women at Ford’s in Dagenham, as seen in the 2010 film Made in Dagenham. Women’s actions lasting almost a century have helped to shape the climate of employment, and the principle that skilled work should be paid appropriately.
Blue Fire tend to construct their narratives with room for songs related to the person, or time period being recalled as a crucial part of the story-telling. Here, Walker, accompanied on the piano by James Hall, rattles through a variety of tunes, some of which will be familiar to anyone with a trade unionism background.
Wesker was also a leading figure in the east London branches of the Communist Party, at a time when they were a popular political force in the area. Many of the residents of Wesker’s neighbourhood were, like Wesker herself, immigrants from eastern Europe, and also often Jewish families, fleeing persecution in the early twentieth century.
Wesker crossed political, social and cultural boundaries, using her skills, knowledge, and refusal to behave as ‘polite society’ thought she should have. It’s made clear in this performance that such niceties are not even amongst the concerns of the working poor.
Walker is excellent as Wesker. Having seen her in Marie Lloyd Stole My Life in the 2023 Edinburgh Fringe, Walker’s skills have continued to develop, and are stronger here than previously. The script, by J.J. Leppink is very strong, weaving a strong and coherent narrative from Wesker’s sometimes chaotic life.
This is a valuable piece of theatre, detailing not just the fascinating story of one woman’s life, but the social history of Stepney and Hackney, and the people who lived there. It also shows us that mis-trust of immigrants, and the difficulties of integrating when there are few facilities provided to help with that integration, are not a modern issue.
Chopped Liver and Unions is highly recommended for anyone who wants to be reminded that the world is changed by women, even if history has pushed them to one side.
Blue Fire Theatre Company’s work continues to tour venues throughout the UK. Details of their shows can be found on their website.
Featured Image courtesy of Blue Fire Theatre
