Review: Bury The Hatchet

📍 Southwark Playhouse Borough 'The Little'

🗓️ 13th August 2026

🎟️ PR Invite

Written by Sasha Wilson and produced by Claire Gilbert for Out Of The Forest Theatre, Bury The Hatchet is a 75-minute retelling of the story of Lizzie Borden.

In 1892, when her father and stepmother are found brutally murdered in their home in Fall River, Massachusetts, Lizzie – the youngest daughter – becomes the prime suspect, accused of killing the pair with an axe… or hatchet, as is humorously debated throughout the evening.

Giving their own interpretation of what happened – because no one truly knows for sure – our trio of storytellers, Sasha Wilson, Lawrence Boothman and David Leopold, take us through the supposed events of that time, posing the question to the audience… do you think Lizzie Borden is guilty?

Walking into ‘The Little’ at Southwark Playhouse Borough, I was immediately struck by the lighting – not just because it was pink, but because it was incredibly striking. A spotlight shining on a hatchet hanging from the ceiling created a shadow effect on the wall, creating an air of mystery before the show even began.

Our storytellers burst onto the stage with a guitar and violin in hand, while Sasha kicks off proceedings with a haunting rendition of Nina Simone’s ‘Feeling Good’ – completely pulling me into the performance from the very beginning.

The cast in this show are absolutely incredible and bounce off each other really well, pulling the audience into the story they are telling. Sasha performed the role of Lizzie wonderfully, capturing the personality we might imagine her to have.

Supported by Lawrence and David, who play multiple characters throughout the production in quick succession, the storytelling is seamless. They change accents (I was surprised to even find my own Cork accent in there!), perform quick costume changes and use various props to help tell each character’s story and perspective. Their comedic timing and enthusiastic, energetic delivery of the story really pulled me in.

However, I did find at times that we were jumping so much between different characters that I was losing track a little bit of who was who. This didn’t affect my overall enjoyment of the performance, though.

The show is quite fast-paced, which does work for something like this – at times with the characters even arguing about how they should convey parts of the story, which really added to the humour. With each actor playing live instruments on stage at various points throughout the evening, it really added another layer to the storytelling. The vocal performances from each of the three actors—not to mention their harmonies and how beautifully their voices blended together—were stunning. Helen Stewart’s costume designs were really eye-catching and fitting for the period.

The lighting caught my eye from the very beginning, but it only got better and better as the story progressed. The show beautifully weaves in folk music to aid with the storytelling, which is an element of the show I really enjoyed. From sudden blackouts to a beautiful mix of reds, blues, pinks and yellows, the lighting complemented both the story and the music well, creating a really immersive feel for the audience.

There’s no denying that this production is incredibly visually and vocally enjoyable to watch. There were a couple of moments that were lost on me a bit due to the speed at which parts of the story were delivered, but overall, this is an impressive piece of theatre. The direction from Vicky Moran is really strong throughout the piece, and the small but extremely effective set, designed by Damien Stanton, is lit beautifully by lighting designer Will Alder.

But did Lizzie Borden do it? That’s something we’ll never know, but you can submit your vote on your way out of the theatre at the end of the show.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Bury The Hatchet. It’s an engaging and wonderfully entertaining piece of theatre, with folk music beautifully woven through the storytelling and brought to life by a brilliant cast.

You only have until 5 September 2026 to catch it at Southwark Playhouse Borough.