Other Worlds

Synopsis

Robin Hood’s Bay and surrounding Yorkshire countryside, 1777-1797

Joe Waterman, a young fisherman from Robin Hood’s Bay, finds his world turned upside down when a feud between fishermen and farmers erupts into violence. As he grapples with his love for Emma, a maid at the local farm, and his desire for a better life, Joe becomes entangled in a web of class conflict, forbidden romance, and the struggle for survival in late 18th-century Yorkshire. Twenty years later, the repercussions of that fateful winter still echo through the lives of Anne Wheatley, the farmer’s wife who raised Emma’s child as her own, and Betsy, the young woman caught between two worlds.

Robert Holman’s sprawling epic weaves together multiple timelines and perspectives to create a rich tapestry of rural life on the cusp of great change. Through a blend of naturalistic dialogue and moments of magical realism, the play explores themes of social mobility, generational conflict, and the weight of history on individual lives. Holman’s use of Yorkshire dialect and vivid characters brings to life a community grappling with the tensions between tradition and progress, loyalty and ambition. As the characters navigate their changing world, the play asks profound questions about the nature of belonging, the possibility of reconciliation, and the power of education to bridge societal divides.