When Marta Vella says “I love Malta” there is a catch in her voice. Effortlessly treading the line between buoyant and sombre, writer-performers Vella and Davinia Hamilton delight in the joys of their home country – the sun, the sea, the exquisite food – while grappling with their shame and disgust at its draconian abortion laws.
To create the show, the pair spoke to medical professionals and people who have personally navigated illegal abortions in Malta. Having conducted these interviews during lockdown, they found startling new issues arising: if one of the only safe ways to get an abortion is to leave the country, what do you do when a global pandemic shuts down the borders? The duo’s use of these stories – some of which were shared for the first time, a testament to the grace with which they work – is selective and moving, engaging and gentle. They are both incredibly funny performers, easy to laugh with and easy to like, making the sober, tragic notes land with an even firmer thud to your heart.
Their show made waves at the Edinburgh fringe last year, and since then there have been updates. The blanket ban of the title meant no one was allowed an abortion no matter the circumstances. Last year, they explain – through a smart combination of news clips, interview soundbites and their own firm, empathetic storytelling – a woman whose life was endangered by her pregnancy took the case to court which led to a partial reform of the law. The ban now remains in place, other than in very few exceptional circumstances.
By feeding us information through these individual stories, woven into their own accounts of childhood in Malta and snippets of history, Marta and Divinia create a complex, layered portrayal of the situation. The clips they show ring true farther afield, and they take a moment to outline the situation in the UK too, which is not as stable as we might think. With bright humour and a huge amount of respect for their interviewees, Blanket Ban is a warning that abortion rights can never be taken for granted, and a hope that open discussion of topics that have repeatedly been silenced can serve as a bold form of protest and a key instigator of change.
At Southwark Playhouse, London, until 20 May
