Artwork by Anonymous Design
Have you got a wild side?
Batty has, she dreams of running barefoot, wild swimming, of talking trees, strange animals and the scent of the seasons turning. In fact she’s starting to wonder if she might be a witch…
Join Batty and her companion Wildthing for gossip, gay abandon, exquisite tenderness and raucous stories (with a side order of ranting), as they unravel the magic and power of ageing. Come and explore the wildness – as opposed to madness – of women, and how our feral side can reconnect us to ourselves and our environment.
UPCOMING TOUR DATES
Monday 28th September – Exeter Phoenix – BOOK NOW
Tuesday 29th September – Ashburton Arts Centre – ON SALE SOON
Thursday 1st October – Sheffield Crucible – BOOK NOW
Thursday 8th October – Settle Victoria Hall – BOOK NOW
Friday 9th October – Helmsley Arts Centre – BOOK NOW
Saturday 10th October – Rural Arts, Thirsk – BOOK NOW
Sunday 11th October – Friarage Theatre, Yarm – BOOK NOW
Tuesday 13th October – The Muni, Pendle – BOOK NOW
Wednesday 14th October – Hull Truck Theatre – BOOK NOW
Friday 23rd October – Slung Low at The Warehouse in Holbeck, Leeds – BOOK NOW
Tuesday 27th October – The Spring, Havant – BOOK NOW
Friday 30th October – Lakeside Arts Centre, Nottingham – BOOK NOW
More dates coming …
Photo credit Barbora Cetlova
A WORD FROM THE WRITER
I’ve always been interested in stories about archetypal female characters, particularly witches. Witches are a potent metaphor for women who’ve been othered or are powerful in ways outside the societal norm and are therefore seen as ‘weird’ or ‘batty’. As I’ve got older I’ve also become interested in ideas of wildness and how this is expressed in my relationship with nature.
I don’t feel there’s enough alternative representation of middle-aged women on stage, or enough exploration of menopause experience. BATTY! is my attempt to make sense of a time when everything is changing, it’s full of questions and big feelings, but I hope it will resonate with anyone who has ever felt a bit different and maybe together we can follow the threads to what comes next…
Video credit Frankie Currie
CREATIVE TEAM
Created and written by Victoria Firth
Directed by Natasha Holmes
Performed by Victoria Firth & Kathryn Hanke
Sound Design by Jack Sibley including original composition and vocals by Eleanor Hooper
Set and costume design by Emma Williams
Lighting Design by Jess Brigham
Dramaturgy by Emma Adams
Production Management by Tom Blackband
With special thanks to the research and development creative team Deborah Pakkar-Hull, Emily Spowage and Hannah Sibai, early contributors Kathleen Yore and Amy Webber, and to Rose Karen Ramsey for inspiring the peg dolls.
Produced by Victoria Firth and Vicky Holliday with marketing by Laura Rodwell and supported by Red Ladder, Enable US, LBT and Keep it Fringe.
