Theatre Journal reviews Mother Courage and Her Children
Ensemble ’84’s production of Mother Courage and Her Children has been reviewed in Theatre Journal, one of the leading academic journals for theatre and performance.
The review was written by Carla Neuss of Baylor University and appears in Volume 78, Number 1, published in March 2026.
Directed by Mark Dornford-May, the production was created by Isango Ensemble and Ensemble ’84 and performed at Horden Methodist Church in May 2025 and then moved to Live Theatre, Newcastle.
The review looks at the production not just as a performance of Bertolt Brecht's classic play, but as part of the story of Ensemble ’84 itself.
Neuss describes the Horden production as “intimate” and “possibly the most truly Brechtian performance of the play to grace the British stage in recent years.” She explores the links between Horden’s mining past, the South African roots of Isango Ensemble and the working-class themes at the heart of Mother Courage.
The review also highlights how Ensemble ’84 was formed in Horden, with local people given the chance to audition and become part of a professional theatre company. It describes the production as a working-class production of Brecht’s classic on every level, noting that the company members were paid Equity-rate wages and went on to tour the production around England.
Neuss praises the use of Horden Methodist Church as a performance space, describing how the former church created an immediacy and rough theatre style that made the production feel like theatre “made by and for its own community.”
She also highlights the performances, including Pauline Malefane as Mother Courage, Noluthando Boqwana-Page as Kattrin and Ensemble ’84 newcomers Brodie Daniel and Joseph Hammal. The production's design is praised for bringing together South African and Northern English working-class influences.
Perhaps most importantly, the review sees the partnership between Isango Ensemble and Ensemble ’84 as something much bigger than a single production. It describes the relationship as a new model of cultural exchange, with artists from South Africa helping to train and develop a new ensemble in a former mining community in the North East of England.
It is a thoughtful look at Mother Courage and Her Children, but also at the ideas behind Ensemble ’84: community, working-class voices, international collaboration and the belief that great theatre can be made anywhere.
Read the full review in Theatre Journal: Read the full review on Project MUSE
