History Theatre / MrsHawking

The first play can be seen on Vimeo [[https://vimeo.com/160544306 here]], while the second can be seen [[https://vimeo.com/160645455 here]], the third [[https://vimeo.com/201477887 here]], the fourth [[https://vimeo.com/265916463 here]], the fifth [[https://vimeo.com/321115275 here]], and the sixth ''[[https://youtu.be/AD68ObnPTcE here]]''.

* DidYouThinkICantFeel: Utterly [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructed]] with Justin Hawking in ''Gentlemen Never Tell.'' He's genuinely stunned to learn that everyone he knows-- from the discerning Rosaline Pembroke to his valet Peter Morgan to his own brother Nathaniel --doesn't think that he is capable of feeling deep emotion or empathy for anyone beyond his own carefree desires (although Nathaniel admits that he does suspect there's a bit more beneath the surface). When he protests that he does in fact care about other people, the parties mentioned above tell him that he doesn't ''act'' that way, and he realizes that they all have a point: his blase attitude toward life, though something of a front, does tend to turn people off and make them think he is callow. Justin thus makes an effort to reveal his softer side from that point forward, which does not go unnoticed by his friends and family.

* WidowMistreatment: Throughly deconstructed. Victoria Hawking, begins the series by losing her husband, Colonel Reginald Hawking. As such, she's subjected to the social isolation described in the Real Life folder below...but the twist is that Victoria likes being left alone and having no one talk to or visit her, especially because it allows her to pursue her work as a society avenger in secret. Furthermore, she's an aromantic asexual, and her marriage to Reginald was absolutely miserable, as he "never stopped loving her" despite quickly realizing just how incompatible they were. As such, when Victoria's nephew Nathaniel tries to be extra kind and attentive to her, she considers that mistreatment and repeatedly shoos him away. Though Victoria does gradually become more comfortable with a select few people over the series, she never stops wearing black or emphasizing her widowhood to society at large, utilizing the social invisibility that comes with it to her own advantage.

* SpottingTheThread: In ''Mrs. Frost'', Clara notices a seemingly-small detail about Dawson Frost, the titular villain's husband--namely, that he supposedly left for a European tour ''before'' he signed a new will giving Elizabeth everything. [[spoiler: This discrepancy allows Madam Malaika to determine that Dawson is actually dead and being kept preserved on ice in Frost's home, which in turn gives Mrs. Hawking the idea of propping up the body in his dressing room and making it seem that Elizabeth went insane after his death.]]

* TheCameo: Was anyone expecting [[spoiler: Malaika Shah to appear in ''[[https://youtu.be/AD68ObnPTcE Fallen Women]]''?]]

* SecretSecretKeeper: ''Gilded Cages'' features an extremely dark version of this trope. Throughout the play's flashbacks to young Victoria in Singapore, she engages in all kinds of endeavors and rule-breaking behind her father's back, and he seems totally oblivious to it. When the two have their major confrontation at the end of the sequence, though, Colonel Stanton reveals that he's ''always'' known what his daughter's been up to, and was secretly allowing it because he figured it was easier to let her make a bit of mischief than to keep her confined and prompt her to cause any real trouble. Once she ''does'' actually make him look bad, though, he comes down terrifyingly hard.

* AluminumChristmasTrees: The opening of ''Base Instruments'' sees Mary pinned back by some ruffians, while another rushes forward to punch her stomach. You know what women wore over their stomachs in Victorian England? ''Rock-hard corsets.'' The guy howls in pain at his nearly broken hand, and Mary smirks "''Whalebone'', love."

* WidowWoman: {{Subverted|Trope}} with Mrs. Hawking. Though her husband has passed, she is neither the tragic bereaved left alone in the world widow nor the cackling schemer who was responsible for his death. She feels freer and glad that she no longer has to deal with him, but her complicated feelings of resentment and regret make her unable to be completely at peace with his death.
** The trope is similarly subverted with Mrs. Emmeline Broadwater in ''Gentlemen Never Tell.'' She's not entirely broken apart by losing her husband, and, much like Mrs. Hawking, is ultimately still constrained by his own standing in society, which limits her freedom even after he's gone--much to her frustration.

* BerserkButton: Mrs. Hawking has quite a few dislikes, but ''nothing'' enrages her more than dishonesty and secrecy, largely because her entire adult life was built on lies: she was married at nineteen to a man she didn't and, because of her aromantic asexuality, literally ''couldn't'' love, and had to put up the facade that everything was fine as long as he was alive. Needless to say, when Mary and Nathaniel start keeping secrets behind her back in ''[[https://vimeo.com/265916463 Gilded Cages]]'' and ''[[https://vimeo.com/321115275 Mrs. Frost]]'', Victoria absolutely loses it, and her relationship with Mary, who she sees as the one behind the schemes, is all but destroyed.

** Averted with the series's other queer characters (Mrs. Hawking is an aromantic asexual, while Justin Hawking is bisexual).

* DoggedNiceGuy: Colonel Hawking is a thorough deconstruction of the trope. Victoria openly resented and hated him, but he, in her own words, "never stopped loving her." Trouble is, Mrs. Hawking, as an aromantic asexual, was ''literally incapable'' of reciprocating either romantically or sexually. The resulting conflict absolutely destroyed the both of them, but the conventions of the time dictated that they couldn't divorce. It's what made Mrs. Hawking such a psychological wreck, and implied to have driven the Colonel to drink and an early death.

* FreudianExcuse: In this case it's the hero rather than the villain, but Mrs. Hawking has harbored bitter resentment towards her father ever since, after ignoring her for most of her life, he forced her to get married whether she wanted to or not. It was a major contributing factor in her present-day inability to trust men. Her marriage to Reginald furthered the problem, especially since, as an aromantic asexual, she was incapable of reciprocating his feelings and ended up the victim of marital rape [[spoiler: and a miscarriage.]]

* GrandRomanticGesture: Colonel Hawking often did these for Victoria; she particularly reminisces about an incident where, after she casually remarked that she liked a red rosebush in the country, he got down on his hands and knees, dug it up, rode with it all the way back to London, and planted it in their garden. As with many tropes in the series, it's [[DeconstructedTrope deconstructed]]--as an aromantic person, Victoria didn't ''like'' Grand Romantic Gestures, but the Colonel wouldn't listen. She angrily remarks that "That man would have done anything for me...except what I wanted."

* IncompatibleOrientation: A big part of why the Hawking marriage is such a disaster is because Reginald is an alloromantic heterosexual, while Victoria is an aromantic asexual.

* ObliviousToLove: In part IV: ''[[https://vimeo.com/265916463 Gilded Cages]]'', Victoria does not realize that Reginald is falling in love with her. She explains it many years later to Nathaniel as her own aromantic nature making it hard for her as a young person to see the signs she herself was unfamiliar with.

* DidISayThatOutLoud: In ''Vivat Regina'', Mary tries to comfort Nathaniel after Mrs. Hawking easily defeats him in a sparring match, saying that it's OK if he's not a "martial man." When an insulted Nathaniel retorts that he enlisted in the British Army as a younger man, Mary blurts out "You ''did?''" incredulously, then immediately tries to backpedal.

* DidISayThatOutLoud: In ''Vivat Regina'', Mary tries to comfort Nathaniel after Mrs. Hawking easily defeats him in a sparring match, saying that it's OK if he's not a "martial man." When an insulted Nathaniel retorts that he did enlist in the British Army, Mary blurts out "You ''did?''" incredulously, then immediately tries to backpedal.

*** This trope is taken UpToEleven during [[spoiler: Mrs. Hawking's nightmare as she lays dying from the Ripper's gunshot wound in ''[[https://youtu.be/AD68ObnPTcE Fallen Women]]''. Nearly ''every single line'' spoken by the characters that surround her are repeats from the first five plays. The only person who gets "new" dialogue is Malaika Shah, as she is the one encouraging Victoria to move forward.]]

* FourthDateMarriage: Take UpToEleven at the end of ''Gentlemen Never Tell.'' [[spoiler: Annabel Broadwater and Cassius Evans, who have known each other for a few days at best and have barely interacted, decide to get married--largely because Cassius, who is gay, longs to be with the Broadwater family butler, and Annabel needs to find a groom of high social class to have her inheritance released. They both happily agree to the deal as it gives them everything they want without actually needing to be in love with one another.]]

** In part VI: ''[[https://youtu.be/AD68ObnPTcE Fallen Women]]'', Nathaniel reveals he’s been after Arthur to propose to Mary for months. [[spoiler: It's taken UpToEleven when, after Arthur does so, Nathaniel proceeds to ''pay for his and Mary's wedding'', with Clara doing all of the arrangements.]]

** "He took his vorpal sword in hand, / Longtime the manxome foe he sought...and stood awhile in thought": Mrs. Hawking, a KnifeNut as described below, gradually becomes obsessed with Mrs. Frost, spending all of her time seeking her out. The show even opens with Victoria "standing in thought" before a massive board with all of the information she's gathered on Frost. Similarly, her operations of protecting others are ''standing'' still because of her obsession.

* KnifeNut: Mrs. Hawking's preferred weapons are knives of all kinds, from thin sharp letter blades to throwing daggers to a plain sturdy khukri.

* SomethingCompletelyDifferent: The first six plays in the series are mystery/thriller/action dramas that explore grief, gender roles, asexuality, and toxic relationships...and then comes ''Gentlemen Never Tell'', a high-spirited comedy of manners with jokes, mistaken identities, and a LoveDodecahedron.

* SpotOfTea: A persistent motif in the series. Mrs. Hawking may not like many things, but tea does make that very short list.
** In ''[[https://vimeo.com/160544306 Mrs. Hawking]]'' when struggling to think of what use she can put Mary to when she first comes to work for her as a maid, the one thing Mrs. Hawking manages to come up with is seeing to afternoon tea.

* SpoiledSweet: In ''Gentlemen Never Tell'', Annabel Broadwater initially appears to be a bit of an entitled brat, but it soon becomes clear that she's just unhappy because she's being forced to marry a man she doesn't love (or even like) to gain even the barest amount of agency (in this case, her parents' money, which won't be released until she marries a man of appropriate standing). Once the situation is cleared up, she proves herself incredibly kind and generous by helping Cora drive off Theo and [[spoiler: agreeing to enter a sham marriage to the homosexual Cassius Evans, so that he can be with his true love--Martin, the Broadwater family butler--and ''she'' can finally control her own destiny.]]

* HighConcept: What if Franchise/SherlockHolmes were a lady Franchise/{{Batman}}?

* FreudianExcuse: In this case it's the hero rather than the villain, but Mrs. Hawking has harbored bitter resentment towards her father ever since, after ignoring her for most of her life, he forced her to get married whether she wanted to or not. It was a major contributing factor in her present-day inability to trust men.

* TheBet: In ''Gentlemen Never Tell'', Justin and Rosaline both compete to win Mrs. Emmeline Broadwater's investment contract for their respective companies (Hawking Capital and Pembroke's of London). The two suggest a friendly wager to amuse each other: if Justin wins, Rosaline must give him a date, and if Rosaline wins, Justin must take Cora Little, Annabelle's maid-companion, to the masquerade ball. [[spoiler: In the end, Mrs. Broadwater chooses Pembroke's, but Annabelle promises to invest her own newly-released inheritance in Hawking Capital, so Justin and Rosaline declare themselves joint winners.]]

* ExactWords: In ''Gentlemen Never Tell'', Rosaline and Justin have a friendly bet over which of them can win the Broadwater family's investment contract for their respective firms. [[spoiler: In the end, Mrs. Broadwater decides to award Rosaline the contract, but her niece Annabelle, grateful to Justin for finding a way to get her inheritance released, offers to make Hawking Capital her own investment partner. Rosaline points out that since the bet specifically stated they were competing for ''Broadwater'' money, not ''Mrs.'' Broadwater's money, they can both claim victory and share the prize.]]

* LoveDodecahedron: ''Gentlemen Never Tell'', as a tribute to comedies of manners, features quite a web of lovers. To wit: Rosaline has her eye on Justin, who's interested in both her and his old flame Cassius Evans, [[spoiler: who in turn is in love with Martin Quincy, the Broadwater family butler.]] Meanwhile, Justin's valet Peter Morgan falls for Cora Little, who has mutual feelings for him but is being pursued by Theo Pryce, who's engaged to be married to Annabelle Broadwater, who, as one end of the dodecahedron, is willing to marry ''anyone'' as part of the terms of her inheritance being released [[spoiler: and ends up choosing Cassius, so he can be with Martin and she can get her money and live on her own terms.]] ''Whew!''