Girls on Fire tells the fascinating, terrifying, and inspiring true story of three extremely brave young women. Hannie Schaft, Freddie Oversteegen, and Truus Oversteegen were Dutch resistance fighters during WW2, who put their lives at risk as spies and assassins, killing Nazis and Nazi sympathisers.
The cast of three each give solid performances. Emma Graveling plays Truus with a serious, fretful demeanour that occasionally gives way to touching warmth and humour. Ellie Grace’s Hannie is both playful and intelligent, with plenty of optimism and resolve. Lily Sitzia’s Freddie transforms from a naïve child to a cold, pragmatic killer. Each performance is distinct, and the interplay between the three actors is engaging.
The script does a good job of selling the friendship between these young women, with plenty of genuinely funny and relatable playful banter. This makes the serious moments all the more chilling; the play doesn’t shy away from describing the absolute horrors that occurred during WW2, and that affected these women specifically. The dialogue, while generally effective, can feel a little anachronistic at times. For the most part, the dialogue is written like a costume drama – with a deliberately antiquated style – but sometimes more modern-sounding language slips in, which can be distracting. The plot also sometimes lacks structure, with the over-arching plot and character arcs being hard to pin down. This culminates in a sudden, abrupt climax.
The staging is creative; between naturalistic dialogue scenes, more stylised movement scenes – accompanied by chilling, if occasionally confusing, sound design – powerfully convey the mood and tone
Overall, Grace, Graveling, and Sitzia must be commended for bringing this story to the stage with such humanity. Clearly, a great deal of passion and sensitivity has gone into this play, and I hope as many people as possible get a chance to see it and to learn about the lives of the amazing women it depicts.
Reviewer: Charles Edward Pipe
Reviewed: 28th September 2025
North West End UK Rating: