The Lightest Element ★★★ Hampstead Theatre | Sep 5 - Oct 12, 2024


Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin was a female scientist whose achievements are extraordinary. She graduated from Cambridge at a time when the university did not award degrees to women. She then went on to do a doctorate at Harvard, which was bestowed through Radcliffe, as the former institution also did not provide such degrees for women. Her work in astronomy was absolutely groundbreaking, but her thesis, developed in the 1920s, that stars were largely composed of hydrogen and helium was misappropriated by a male colleague. Nevertheless her place in the pantheon of science is now secure, and this drama highlights her fascinating personal story, focussing on her determination to become Harvard's first female chair of a department. Unfortunately, the construction of this narrative suffers from various issues that face playwrights when they are trying to introduce the public to little-known historical figures. Facts about her life are rather awkwardly worked into the text, in this case using the device of her secretary recounting them to a student reporter. All of the secondary characters, including said secretary and reporter, are rather one dimensional, and the scene in which Payne-Gaposchkin is elected department Chair is full of stereotypes mouthing unrealistic dialogue. The plot thread about Professor G's persecution during America's Red Scare in the 1950s, with its cartoonishly evil FBI infiltrator into the student press, seems rather awkwardly inserted and serves only to provide another instance of the patriarchy's oppression. Several of the scenes are set in a 1950s office which is dominated by an anachronistic office chair, that could be a metaphor for the equally uneven historical writing. Payne-Gaposchkin uses phrases like "going along to get along" and her legendary swearing has a range that is definitely contemporary. Despite such caveats, however, Maureen Beattie does a fine job of bringing to life a scientific star who deserves to be better known. The major strength of The Lightest Element is that it shines its light on a woman and her work which not only merit greater recognition, but need to be celebrated.

Rated: ★★★

Reviewed by J.C.
Photo by Mark Douet

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