Aldwych Theatre
17 May
Katherine: face of an angel,
niece of an emperor,
hard as nails. She will not bend
like a sapling, though
she is dragged of her queenship
and left out to die like a dog.
Anne, dancing in yellow
on her grave: a virgin bride,
eye like a hawk, a mouth full of serpents.
Maybe a step too far, maybe a bed
or guilty door that leads her at last
to the headsman.
Jane, a dormouse creeping
into conversation: quiet, sweet,
with skin and will like thick, rich cream,
and on her cheek a blush
that is like nothing more than a pink rose,
thorns carefully plucked.
Wolf Hall and Bring Up the Bodies run
at the Aldwych Theatre until 6 September 2014
