Play depicting graphic abortion paused due to viewers feeling faint

Image Credit: M T Elgassier via Unsplash

A London play, which depicted a graphic abortion scene, had to be paused after several members of the audience called for assistance after feeling faint during the scene.

As of July this year, the Almeida Theatre held the production of the play “The Years”, which is based on the autobiography of French Noble prize-winner Annie Enaux; ‘Les Années’. The play tells the story of a woman “set against the backdrop of a rapidly changing post-war Europe.”

 Included in the play is a graphic scene depicting an illegal abortion. According to Right to Life UK,  during the scene, members of the audience signaled for assistance after a man who was seated in the front stalls was feeling faint. This led to the performance being paused for ten minutes to attend to the man, who was taken to a bar area, followed by three other people who also reported feeling faint.

Another man in the audience had shouted that this “was a disgrace” and “there was no warning”, but in a rare move, was responded to by one of the actresses that a warning about the scene was given, which can be found on the Almeida Theatre’s website.

After the incident, the theatre said “The performance on Monday of The Years was stopped for 10 minutes so that our front of house team could provide care for an audience member who required assistance. During the stoppage, care was also provided for three other audience members. All audience members were quick to recover after brief assistance”. They also confirmed that warnings about the abortion scene were in place on “the Almeida website – here, on the booking page, in pre-visit emails, and on front of house signage in the theatre”

Catherine Robinson of Right to Life UK commented saying: “Every abortion, legal or illegal, is a great sadness and no doubt extremely difficult to watch. The abortion described in this play seems to be an act of desperation and highlights the distinct lack of choice that so many women feel ahead of having an abortion”.

“Women in such difficult circumstances should be provided with the support they need to care for themselves and their baby”.

It is interesting that when confronted with the reality of abortion, theatergoers felt faint - and the reality is that abortion is sickening and gruesome. Yet the reality is almost always kept hidden, and almost never discussed, precisely because abortion is so cruel.