MULES
Mules premiered at the Theatre Upstairs at the Royal Court in London on 25 April 1996, directed by Roxanna Silbert with the following female cast: Sheila Whitfeld, Abi Eniola and Clare Perkins who each played multiple roles in the production. After the Royal Court production, Mules toured to various theatres in the UK.
Winsome Pinnock wrote Mules for Clean Break, a theatre company based in North London which is dedicated to showcasing stories about imprisoned women. The play is one of Pinnock’s most powerful pieces. It tackles the subject of drug trafficking, exposing the many reasons why women enter this violent, dangerous and life-threatening illegal business.
About the Playwright
Playwright, academic and chairwoman for the Alfred Fagon Awards, Winsome Pinnock was born in London to Jamaican parents. She is arguably, one of the most established and resilient Black British female playwrights in London. Beginning her professional writing career with her first stage play, Winds of Change, in 1987, Winsome has remained a constant figure in Black British play history, unafraid of tackling social and political issues. Her writing has responded to a wide range of topics; Can you Keep a Secret tackled racial killings, inspired by the death of Stephen Lawrence, A Rock in Water explored the life of Claudia Jones, activist and cofounder of Notting Hill Carnival, and IDP (internally displaced person) was a response to the situation in Darfur.
Other published plays by Winsome Pinnock include Leave Taking, Talking in Tongues, A Hero’s Welcome, A Rock in Water and One Under.
Summary (Extract)
Northern Teenager ALLIE (previously played as a girl from Liverpool) has run away to London to escape sexual abuse from her mother’s boyfriend. She is mugged in central London and is kicked out of her bedsit when she struggles to pay the rent.
Homeless on the streets of London, a kind designer-dressed American lady, Birdie, gives her money, a hot breakfast and offers her a job opportunity that will keep her off the streets forever. Desperate to prove she can make it without her mother’s help, Allie accepts the most dangerous job of all.
In this speech Allie talks to Lou (a young Jamaican mother who also worked for Birdie) in the prison cell.
Donna gives me this love letter for Alice, right, but she doesn’t tell me Letitia’s going with her. So Letitia thinks I’m after her precious Alice and jumps me on the way to PE. Fucking cat scratched me up to ribbons. Next day Letitia’s bought me two roll-ups and a packet of Wrigley’s because she’s found out the truth and she’s sorry. You got to laugh, ent you? (Slight pause.)
A bird come in recreation today, bashed itself against the windows like a mad thing. Donna reckons there’s loads of ’em trapped in the walls. You can hear ’em.
Lou changes her position but doesn’t speak.
Come on, cheer up. It may never happen. (Slight pause.) Joke.
You should see all the shit me and Zoë’s got past the kangas. She reckons they turn a blind eye ’cos we’re all more manageable when we’re zombified. We’re sitting on a fucking goldmine. Anything you want, just ask and I’ll get it for you.
(With no response from Lou, she starts to answer herself back.)
Lisa’s been sent down the block again. ‘She hasn’t. What’s she gone and done now?’ Attacked one of the kangas. ‘She didn’t.’ She did. ‘Never.’ On my life. You’d a thought she’d learnt her lesson last time. ‘She’s always in trouble that one.’ I know. She’ll come to a bad end. (Slight pause.) Joke.
Lou turns away from Allie.
You’re selfish, do you know that? Do you think that you’re the only one who doesn’t get a visit? The only one who doesn’t get phone calls? At least you get letters. Home is a long way away for all of us.
I know what you’re doing. You’re sucking all my energy up into your silence. You can’t do that. The rules are different here. Don’t you understand? There isn’t enough pity to go around.
(She turns away from Lou.) When I was ten I started getting sharp pains in my side and had to be taken to the doctors. Where does it hurt? Here, here or here? His fingers were cold where they touched – no, prodded – me. His pokes left little indentations all over my body because there was no life in my skin. His touch felt like love or as close to it as I could imagine. His touch stayed with me long after the pain had gone and I longed for it. If I concentrated hard enough I could make the pain appear by an effort of will. It became the mystery of our street. I was so obviously not faking it and yet no one could find the reason for the pain. It was the first time I’d got one over on them. They wanted me to hurt because healing me gave them a reason to live, a reason to continue to believe in themselves. Sometimes when the doctor was examining me I felt our roles were reversed and that I was prodding his tummy, listening for his irregular heartbeat and when our gazes met – one cold stare meeting another – I could see that he was aware that I knew.
Lou turns away from Allie.
Bette on E wing does healing. Perhaps you ought to see her. I heard she healed Mandy. Who tried to kill herself? She placed her hand over Mandy’s wrist where there was a deep gash and a light come out of her palm and everybody who was there swears they saw the light enter the wound which closed itself up. Now it’s as smooth as a newborn baby’s. Where does it hurt? Here, here or here?