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Introduction:	The Secret Reunion is a fictional drama written by Adrian Davis.

It was written and produced in Port Macquarie NSW, Australia. It was premiered in the same town where for a period of time Nancy Wake, who features in the play, resided.

The Secret Reunion was premiered at Players Theatre, Port Macquarie on 24 August 2012.

Synopsis: The Secret Reunion is a drama set in two time frames, 1975 (30 years after the end of WWII) and the early 1940’s. Five women spies: Nancy Wake, Vera Atkins, Virginia Hall, Odette Churchill (Fellows) and Eileen (Didi) Nearne return to the Special Forces’ Club, Kensington, London to commemorate 30 years since the end of the War - with the opening of a side room dedicated to the fallen women of France Section, Special Operations Executive (SOE). The SOE was a secret group inspired by Winston Churchill to set Europe ablaze and disrupt the Nazis operations in occupied France and other countries.

Initially, the reunion goes well and all are delighted to see their former spy boss Colonel Maurice Buckmaster. But the atmosphere changes when a suspected former double agent, Henri Dericourt, appears at the club. Each of the spies re-count profound memories of the War prompted by the surreal character “Conscience”.

Audiences will see flashbacks to Didi’s gripping interrogation, Odette’s excruciating torture, Virginia’s heart wrenching dilemma and Nancy Wake’s humorous take on women fighting battles that men can’t resolve! Entwined in these flashbacks is Buckmaster searching for the truth, looking for closure, trying to confirm once and for all if Henri is responsible for the deaths of the fallen agents. Henri is confident that Buckmaster has nothing on him; after being tried unsuccessfully for treason in Britain and France.

As the pressure mounts in the function room, uncertainty with guilt looming and switching sides, the question is asked, “with over 40 million people killed in the War, would one more death make any real difference?” The bonding and trust shown by the girls and Buckmaster proves too much for Dericourt and suffocated by guilt commits suicide.

Leading Characters & actors in the premier:

Productions:

Performed in two Acts at the [http://www.playerstheatre.org.au Players Theatre. Port Macquarie, Australia] for three weeks.

Comment: The play is fictionalised but is based on some true events that are portrayed as flashback scenes where younger versions of the female agents are portrayed. Although the real names and some references are based on fact, Adrian Davis has entwined a fictional plot of realism with one surreal character portraying the conscience of the principal characters. Unlike several plots of this genre the Nazi’s are not the protagonist, the suspected double agent Henri Dericourt and Maurice Buckmaster the Colonel in charge of F Section are – blaming each other for the deaths of agents. The flashback interrogation scenes touch on the rivalry between the Sicherheitsdierist (SD) and the Gestapo. The plot line includes mention of the Prosper Rѐseau an ill-fated network of agents that was infiltrated by the enemy. A great deal has been written and commented upon about this rѐseau.

The play has an alternative ending. An original ending was substituted by Adrian Davis after work shopping the play in 2010 and 2011. Both have been retained to suit different directors.

References;

The Wolves at the Door, The True story of America’s greatest Female Spy; Judith L Pearson, The Lion Press, Guildford, Connecticut, USA. 2005.

A Life in Secrets, Vera Atkins and the Missing Agents of WWII; Sarah Helm, Anchor Books, New York, 2007.

The Autobiography of the Woman the Gestapo called, The White Mouse; Nancy Wake, The Macmillam Company of Australia Pty Ltd, 1985.

External Links:

Adrian Davis

Special Forces Club

The Players Theatre Port Macquarie