Daughter of Re: The Forgotten Life of Hatshepsut, King of Egypt @ Rosewood Center for Family Arts

—Jill Sweeney

Some girls have horse phases. I, much like post-Napoleonic Europe, had an Egypt phase (alright, alright—my Egypt phase was after my horse phase). As a tween I haunted the aisles of our local bookstore, coveting the shrink-wrapped (and totally fictional) Egyptology: Search for the Tomb of Osiris, with its bejeweled falcon on the cover, and devouring every Amelia Peabody mystery set in Egypt’s 19th century archaeological boom.

So imagine my delight in hearing that a local playwright had created a musical centered on one of Egypt’s most fascinating and mysterious figures: Hatshepsut, the fifth pharaoh of Egypt’s prosperous 18th Dynasty, who ruled over one of Egypt’s golden ages for more than 21 years. Hatshepsut ushered in a new area of trading and prosperity and was one of Egypt’s most prolific builders, creating temples and monuments of unsurpassed grandeur.

Why, then, is Hatshepsut Egypt’s “forgotten” king? Because Hatshepsut was a woman, who seized power under the cover of a regency to become one of Egypt’s very few female rulers. Because she baffled later scholars by having herself depicted as a man after assuming the office of pharaoh, sporting the traditional beard. And because there was a deliberate, concerted effort to erase her reign, and her very existence, from Egypt’s history.

Daughter of Re has been in the works for several years. Created by Brian Christensen (an audio engineer, composer, and musician who’s worked with numerous local theaters), it was initially presented at Imprint Theatreworks’ annual New Works Festival three years ago. My understanding is that it’s been reworked fairly extensively since then (and is still in progress), and that it was selected for the 2022 Rogue Theatre Festival (a hybrid model showcasing both live new works as well as streaming productions) in New York City, prompting a one-night-only, live-before-a-studio-audience opportunity to see the piece being filmed. And man—not to make anyone jealous, but what a treat it was to be in said studio audience.

The word “didactic” has unfortunate connotations—slow, plodding, dull—but in its purest sense, it simply means something that’s intended to teach. Daughter of Re is didactic in the best of ways, including an astonishing wealth of historical detail about the Egypt in which Hatshepsut lived. All that, plus puppets! Add in some toe-tapping musical numbers and a lively, game cast, and you can’t beat that with a stick.

Rachel Nicole Poole (who’s a new addition to the cast) takes the character of Hatshepsut from an obedient daughter to an exasperated wife to HBIC without messing a step, imbuing the character with fire and pathos. Her Hatshepsut, raised to be “God’s wife” by her stern (as far as puppets go) father, and then (after the death of several heirs to the throne) married off to a sickly boy and forced to exercise power on her baby stepson’s behalf without recognition, is a study in bubbling resentment. You cheer when she, along with her stalwart steward Senenmut (a warm Brian Hathaway), finally takes charge at a mock press-conference, to the bafflement of her stodgy, patriarchal subjects. We mourn with her as she hits the final, familiar glass ceiling. Poole can belt with the best of them, but it was her deep, resonant low notes that impressed me most.

Narrating Hatshepsut’s story is Elisa James, a triple threat if there ever was one—between her clear, operatic voice, her gift with physical comedy, and her skill in manipulating her puppet co-stars, she’s a joy to watch. The rest of the cast (Jovane Caamaño and Jason Solís) play a number of roles with energy and wit, ad libbing throughout, and gamely scurrying onstage and off hauling thrones and puppets with elan. Director Rebecca Lowrey (doing double duty as director and musical accompanist) has an obvious passion for the piece and her cast, and the work’s cohesion and vivacity are a testament to her skill.

Christensen’s music is a lively mix of styles, with more than a few earworms you’ll be singing on the way home. I particularly enjoyed the first number, and its final reprise, as well as a doo-woppy exegesis on the concept of “ma’at”, or what’s proper. I may have a few quibbles on song placement and tone shifts, but even as more of a concert piece (and even with a few stops and starts throughout the filming) the show has undeniable verve and bounce, and a warmth for its subject that was obvious.

For whatever reason—dynastic uncertainty, jealousy, or good ol’ fashioned sexism—Hatshepsut’s successors made every effort to destroy her creation and blot out her name. What a pleasure to have such a spirited musical give her back her crown and her voice.

WHERE: Rosewood Center for Family Arts

WHEN: Closed May 26th

WEB: The filmed production will be streaming as part of the Rogue Theater Festival from June 30th to July 3rd; tickets go on sale on June 7th—for more information, visit: https://www.roguetheaterfestival.com/streamingonshowtix4u