Gary Owen’s Solo Play Captures Welsh Woman’s Sexy Defiance

by Zack Rogow

When a character changes dramatically onstage, a magical transformation takes place right before our eyes. That’s the kind of spell Alicia Mason casts in the role of Effie in “Iphigenia at Splott” at Shotgun Players. Welsh playwright Gary Owen has created a one-woman show, bringing us on an extraordinary journey into the life of an unforgettable woman. The direction by Michelle Talgarow gracefully moves us through Mason’s engaging transformations.

At the start, Effie, a twenty-something rudderless woman, lives in Splott, a gritty, working-class district of Cardiff, Wales. Splott is a dead-end neighborhood with gangs and drugs, and streets with boarded-up storefronts. Effie spends her nights drinking till she passes out or hooks up with men she meets in bars. Handouts from her grandmother barely keep her afloat. Full-time work seems both out of reach and irrelevant to Effie.

Every other sentence out of Effie’s mouth features the F-bomb. When a local woman with three children asks Effie to avoid profanity because it disturbs her little daughter, Effie curses her out even more. Humorously, Effie picks apart the woman’s appearance, and the looks of everyone on her block, including her sometimes boyfriend. Effie herself is dressed in the coolest of garb—a revealing bodice and tights that match her orange curls.

Effie’s honesty is funny and brash, and her refusal to follow social norms seems admirable. But Effie isn’t particularly likeable at first, even though her outspoken, sexy dialogue grabs attention. And then . . .

Life happens to Effie, despite her façade of cool invulnerability. A one-night stand opens her heart in ways she never expected. She starts to see herself and her neighborhood in new ways. As the solo actor, Alicia Mason excels, bringing us into Effie’s inmost feelings, showing us her surprise at her own changes. The play just goes deeper and deeper, until Effie grows from urchin to goddess.

By the end, Effie has earned the parallel with the heroine of the ancient tragedy “Iphigenia in Aulis” by Euripides. Just as Iphigenia sacrifices her life so the gods will allow the Greeks to sail to victory in the Trojan War, so Effie sacrifices her own desire for revenge to achieve a greater good for her people.

At crucial moments, Effie speaks directly to us with a hand-held microphone. Because those mic speeches seem to say, “OK, this is my message, now pay attention,” some artificiality creeps in.

But Mason nails the emotional trajectory of her character, using a brilliant working-class Welsh accent for the tough but lyrical script. As Effie, Mason deserves an award for solo performance, and Shotgun’s production is a winner.

 

“Iphigenia in Splott” by Gary Owen, directed by Michelle Talgarow, sound by James Ard, costumes by Buffy, scenic & props by Angrette McCloskey, and lighting by Christian V. Mejia, at Shotgun Players, Berkeley, California.

Info: shotgunplayers.org – to August 23, 2026.

Cast: Alicia Mason (as Effie).

Banner photo: Alicia Mason. Photos by Ben Krantz

 

Zack Rogow is a playwright, poet, and literary translator. www.zackrogow.com