In each issue of D&T we bring you an expert's guide to a play for study with your students. Here, Paul Bateson introduces this gripping play, based on a true story.
Originally staged at the National Theatre in 2018, and now an option for study in AQA GCSE component one since 2023, The Great Wave is epic and emotional.
Spanning 1979 to 2003, this play looks at the mysterious disappearance of a Japanese schoolgirl, and her mother and sister's tireless search to find her.
Social context
An aspect of assessment for component one is ‘developing knowledge of, and understanding context of, the whole play.’ The Great Wave is based on the true stories of Japanese citizens who were abducted by the North Korean regime in the 1970s–80s and the play is rooted in that context so any study needs to prioritise this historical situation as a starting point and devote time to it.
The Methuen Drama edition has useful introductory notes to get started, and annotations throughout the script to explain and detail some of the cultural references and idiosyncrasies. Treading carefully, some initial work around international stereotypes, could be an interesting starting point, as would some basic research tasks. The exam board online materials also provide information about the social and historical background, and cover topics such as stereotypes, accents and casting.
Presenting various authentic newspaper pictures, headlines, and articles from the time and more recent reports could help bring the context to life in tableau or as devised dialogues using the verbatim reporting. These sources could also help production students create mood boards.
Plot and characteristics of text
The Great Wave is a historical drama spanning many decades, beginning with the disappearance of 17-year-old Hanako during a storm. The girl is believed by Japanese authorities to have drowned. The play has elements of a thriller with twists and turns, lots of scenes, leading to a tense finale.
The play splits between the family home in Japan, in which Hanako's sister Reiko and mother Etsuko work to discover what has happened, and a compound in North Korea where, it transpires, she has been taken.
Although this play explicitly explores politics on a large scale, it is the minute emotional truths of the characters with which we are often concerned; most scenes play like naturalistic drama, spotlighting the developing relationships as the characters adapt, shift, resign, and despair at their respective situations.
Originally staged with ten actors playing twelve parts, this play features roles that are male and female, young and old, with the leading roles being females. Perhaps the aspect to be most mindful of is the ageing of all the characters: over the 25+ years of the play, most acutely noticeable will be the two sisters who need to show a change from teenager to middle age.
Exploring character
The exam asks us to explore ‘ideas for how the play may be interpreted practically’ and character exploration, in terms of emotion, is key.
Studying Stanislavski as a basis would be a solid approach, using ‘given circumstances’, ‘magic if’, and ‘emotion memory’. Grief and loss – in particular – are inherent, which could be challenging to explore with young actors, but perhaps using the ‘broken bonsai scene’ where a Korean official shows emotion for the first time over the loss of a plant, or the idea of losing something while hoping it still might turn up are good launching-off points rather than death itself.
Anything that explores emotions – vocally and physically – will help, as would exercises around subtext. Discuss undertones, and work on mannerisms and idiosyncrasies to provides depth to the characters. The final scenes are genuinely heartbreaking, tense, and poignant; experimenting with beat, pause, and silence would allow the suspense, uncertainty, and helplessness to be highlighted.
Theatrically, the dynamics in several scenes are low-status characters challenging high-status characters, using intelligent and emotional methods in serious situations. Improvisations in role around this would help, especially in terms of proxemics on stage to show shifts in power. The simple dynamic of the interrogation table and chair throwing up a delightful status struggle in use of levels.
Space and stage
There are exciting challenges in depicting two distinct places: Japan and North Korea, with various locations used within each (homes, interrogation room, beach etc.). Designing a set that can shift between and show passages of time – sometimes hours, sometimes years – is the primary consideration. The original production (available to watch for free for UK state schools and FE colleges as part of the National Theatre Collection) used a rotating stage and projections.
Although the acting styles will be very true and naturalistic, the set must be simple, fast and symbolic. This provides good study into representative design and symbiotics. The stage directions and introductory notes suggest various objects that can be used to mark the various locations; a hanging portrait to denote a family home, or a harsh lamp for the interrogation room, for example.
Aside from practicality, some of the repeating motifs carry huge meaning: the repeated release of a sky lantern to commemorate another anniversary of her daughter missing, for instance, creates rich opportunities for prop design.
There are a number of references to the sea (the original version again) using sound effects and lighting. The play begins with a startling thunder crash, and there are notes for the sounds of waves in the scene transitions, which would all provide a good work for a student on a production route.
Overall, as part of a wider focus from various exam boards on equality, diversity and inclusion, The Great Wave brings fresh perspectives and some excellent study potential, exploring drama which is both complicated and contemporary, with timeless simplicity of love and loss.
The Great Wave is published by Methuen Drama, ISBN 9781350402393.
Methuen have a recorded Q&A with Francis Turnly online and a poster relating to the play.
Stream the National Theatre production, and access resources: nationaltheatre.org.uk/learn-explore/schools/national-theatre-collection