How have I never heard of
Gertrude Bell? She sounds like my kind of woman. Born in 1868 to a wealthy British family, her life sounds like one constant stream of adventures. She was a writer, explorer, mountaineer, archaeologist, and politician in an era when few women were given the opportunity to do any of those things, much less all of them. Of course she wasn't just an admirable heroine; history is rarely that cut and dried. She was also heavily involved with Britain's colonization of Arabia and helped to draw the borders of modern Iraq, for better or worse. But
according to Wikipedia, she was "one of the few representatives of His Majesty's Government remembered by the Arabs with anything resembling affection." That's something, I guess. Her life would make one epic play, which is perhaps why playwright Trista Baldwin decided to focus on a few years at the end of her life, when she's serving as Oriental Secretary, i.e., a liaison between the British and Iraqi governments. Of ill health, she begins to gather her writings together, and the reminiscing provides a portrait of a life. Aided by live music and excellent performances by Annie Enneking and the rest of the cast,
Eye of the Lamb is a fascinating play about a remarkable woman who should be remembered.
