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15 August 2022 1:35 PM

Non-binary Joan of Arc star responds to criticism of new play: ‘it’s an exploration, it’s imagination, it’s fiction’

I, Joan will reimagine the Joan of Arc story with they/them pronouns.

By Emily Maskell

Words: Emily Maskell; pictures: Helen Murray/Twitter/@The_Globe

London’s Globe Theatre will be home to the new play I, Joan where the Joan of Arc story is reimagined and the legendary leader uses they/them pronouns.

Unsurprisingly in 2022, this drew some criticism from people online with some saying the play is erasing women from history.

Now the actor playing the iconic historical figure has come forward with their thoughts on the subject.

Writing on Twitter Isobel Thom (pictured above), who identifies as non-binary clarified the show is not “taking historical Joan away” or “posthumously changing the gender of Joan of Arc”.

“This show is art: it’s an exploration, it’s imagination, it’s fiction’,” Thom continued.

“Joan is an icon of so many, of any gender, but holds such a special significance to women/afab people in amongst many others. Myself included.”

“If you feel the need to pass judgment on the lives of non-binary and trans people, I would encourage you to pause and try to practice kindness,” Thom concluded.  

The patron saint of France, who died at the age of 19, was said to have won a major French military victory over the English during the Hundred Years War – I, Joan will offer this story from another point of view.

I, Joan is directed by Ilinca Radulian, written by Charlie Josephine, who also identifies as non-binary.

“Our story of Joan is full of joy and love and hope and magic and revolution,” Thom told NBC News.

“Storytelling and art is a platform to share experiences, to stretch imaginations, to excite and inspire, to explore language, and to represent,” Thom continued.

“People and communities deserve to be championed, and there’s no limit to the number we can do that for.”

Michelle Terry, the artistic director of Shakespeare’s Globe said in a separate statement that I, Joan is “not the first to present Joan in this way, and we will not be the last.”

Terry notes that the production aims to “question the gender binary” and “offer the possibility of another point of view.”

“Shakespeare did not write historically accurate plays. He took figures of the past to ask questions about the world around him,” Terry added. “Our writers of today are doing no different, whether that’s looking at Ann Boleyn, Nell Gwynn, Emilia Bassano, Edward II, or Joan of Arc.”

She continued: “The Globe is a place of imagination. A place where, for a brief amount of time, we can at least consider the possibility of world’s elsewhere.”

The I, Joan production opens on 25 August in the open-air Globe Theatre.

The Attitude September/October issue is out now.

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