A Small and Quiet Light at Minerva Theatre Chichester Review
Identity, bravery, and a tribute to unsung heroes of the war, ’a small and quiet light’ tells the brief, fictionalised story of the very real British-Indian spy, Noor-un-Nisa Inayat Khan (commonly known by her code name Madeline) who was invaluable in the war against Nazi Germany. Spanning her life in brief flashbacks as she sits in an interrogation room being interviewed by a Nazi officer, the show feels as though it covers so much and so little in tandem. It is hard to capture the life of a real life person in a fictionalised retelling, but there was much to be desired in Stephanie Street’s script, the entirety of the show’s design, and the direction by Elin Schofield. Leaving the theatre, the desire to deep-dive into Noor-un-Nisa’s life came from a place of lack of teaching and information in the show, as opposed to the thrill of wanting to know more. For those unfamiliar with Noor-un-Nisa Inayat Khan, the show offers little other than a fleeting, face-value look into the life of a woman who gave her life for her country, attempting to aid the war effort in World War 2.
Bringing the story to life is an all-female cast, lead by Priyanga Burford as Noor-un-Nisa, rarely ever leaving the stage. Burford does a fine job of portraying our protagonist, but feels let down by the script and direction, often leaving the role feeling hollow. She never feels like she is under the very real threat posed to her by her role in the secret intelligence, each scene disjointedly flowing into the next. There are moments in her youth we see played out which transition back into her place in holding, which never feel like they fit the space they are being portrayed. There is an attempt to examine her identity as a half-Indian, half-American British citizen, with moments of unfathomable racism under enemy capture, but it never amounts to much. Unfortunately, most of the cast are let down by the lack of depth to their characters, and the lack of distinction between the multi-roles most of them play. The most convincing in their role is that of Caoilfhionn Dunne who plays the Nazi officer, Vogt, bringing a quiet, unnerving reality to the role which Noor-un-Nisa falsely reads as kindness. Paksie Vernon and Léa des Garets also both do a good job of playing a multitude of memorable roles within the piece, namely Abba/Jepson and Viennot respectively, but it was never clear at first if they were new characters, male or female, or how exactly they fit into the story.
I feel as though a lot of where ‘a small and quiet light’ falls short is the lack of exposition given to the story. Not everything needed to be explained down to the detail to the audience, but a lot of Noor-un-Nisa’s life and roles felt rushed through or tossed aside, expecting the audience to understand military and war jargon. I believe that what exactly it was that Noor-un-Nisa was passing back to the UK intelligence was never fully delved into, and whilst this could have clearly been an artistic choice as every bit of information was secret, it still left the audience wandering what her role and purpose really was. Everything that happens to her seems to happen out of the scene, with fingers pointing and things happening which are merely referenced. There is a lot of talk around a cinema she works in, and the gustapo, but nothing feels concrete or grounded in the context of the piece. It feels a real shame, as the story seems to be one of real passion and admiration for our very real heroine, but never delivers on what it really wants to drive home for the audience. I had more questions coming out of the theatre than I did going in, mostly through lack of context and information given in the piece; not that it needed to be a lecture on Noor-un Nisa’s life, but to be leaving with barely more information than before the piece started feels like it has not achieved its purpose. The design by Anna Yates adds very little to the story too, being set in the round and with only one section of the stage being lower than the rest, supposedly meant to represent the holding cell that Noor-un-Nisa is being interrogated in. It is wholly uninteresting to see, and prop stools being moved back and forth add little to the story being told, too.
It is a shame that the story of this remarkable woman feels so wholly unfinished in Street’s ‘a small and quiet light’. There is clearly a love for her story and her history there, but never feels complete in what it is trying to say. There are so many references to music and the stories she loved to write amongst the dialogue, but the recurring motifs never amount to anything or add real depth to the narrative being told. The final reflection on how this woman aided her country but was let down by those around her is the real grounding moment in this piece, connecting to the audience in a way that the rest of the piece had not. It is a shame that this piece fell short of what it could have been, but the clear desire to make this woman visible was admirable in the attempt to root her story on stage.
A small and quiet light runs until 12th September at the Minerva Theatre in Chichester.
★★★
Written by Rosie for Theatre and Tonic, August 2026.
Trigger Warnings for this show include: flashing lights, gunshot noises, haze, e-cigarettes, references to Nazi fascism and racism.
