Summary: A portrait of journalist/writer Rebecca West whose life spanned most of the 20th century, with memories from her great-niece and thoughts from an actress who portrays her on stage.
Like the producer, I didn't know anything about Rebecca West... and she was certainly a fascinating character. A British writer, journalist, artist, feminist whose life and work spanned the 20th century. Not sure why I'd never heard of her, and it's that amazement of never having heard of this woman that propels, or initiates, this piece. The producer gets an invitation to a play about Rebecca West, googles her to figure out if he wants to see the show, and then takes us on a journey to discover who West is. There are basically three voices in this piece... the voice of Rebecca herself as played in the stage play (performance voice/ recording), the voice of the actress who plays Rebecca (interview voice), and the voice of Rebecca's great niece (interview voice) - plus sort of a fourth voice, the curious producer on a journey to discover Rebecca. It's a good piece, well produced. I learned a lot about Rebecca, and I appreciated that. But I think if a listener was not propelled by his or her own desire to know more about West, the piece might not sustain interest. In the end, the piece felt a bit long. A good idea, a nice approach to an historical figure, but perhaps not enough to sustain a half hour doc. I think it may be my American radio ears though, and my years as an editor, that I am not as able or willing to let pieces just breathe and stretch. But I am not sure if this piece would hold the attention of a lot of American public radio listeners for the full half hour. However, it's a nice piece of historical reporting, not easily done, and not heard enough on public radio in the States.
Comments for RN Documentary: Becoming Rebecca West
This piece belongs to the series "RN Documentaries"
Produced by David Swatling
Other pieces by Radio Netherlands Worldwide
Rating Summary
1 comment
Emily Hanford
Posted on November 21, 2005 at 11:52 AM | Permalink
Review of RN Documentary: Becoming Rebecca West
Like the producer, I didn't know anything about Rebecca West... and she was certainly a fascinating character. A British writer, journalist, artist, feminist whose life and work spanned the 20th century. Not sure why I'd never heard of her, and it's that amazement of never having heard of this woman that propels, or initiates, this piece. The producer gets an invitation to a play about Rebecca West, googles her to figure out if he wants to see the show, and then takes us on a journey to discover who West is. There are basically three voices in this piece... the voice of Rebecca herself as played in the stage play (performance voice/ recording), the voice of the actress who plays Rebecca (interview voice), and the voice of Rebecca's great niece (interview voice) - plus sort of a fourth voice, the curious producer on a journey to discover Rebecca. It's a good piece, well produced. I learned a lot about Rebecca, and I appreciated that. But I think if a listener was not propelled by his or her own desire to know more about West, the piece might not sustain interest. In the end, the piece felt a bit long. A good idea, a nice approach to an historical figure, but perhaps not enough to sustain a half hour doc. I think it may be my American radio ears though, and my years as an editor, that I am not as able or willing to let pieces just breathe and stretch. But I am not sure if this piece would hold the attention of a lot of American public radio listeners for the full half hour. However, it's a nice piece of historical reporting, not easily done, and not heard enough on public radio in the States.