WILD Comes to Reading

It's really hard to talk about birth without descending into enormous clichés. So WILD is doing it with comedy, ferocity and a pineapple. This is a show for parents, grandparents, or for anyone who simply knows someone who has been born. Audiences should be prepared to laugh till they cry, cry until they laugh, and change the way they think about birth forever.

From a comic unpicking of Hollywood birth scenes to hilarious cabaret songs and dance numbers involving Sudocrem and a Fab ice lolly, WILD challenges the way we talk about birth in a way that everyone can relate to through real stories, music, comedy and a healthy dose of mischief.

"Everyone has a birth story. So why aren't we talking about them more? Even if we don't give birth ourselves, the chances are high that at some point we are going to be in close contact with someone who has. WILD tackles a big, messy topic from a very personal point of view." Laura Mugridge

Performers Laura Mugridge and Katie Villa wanted to create a piece that reflects this crucial part of our lives that everyone has been through, but very few of us talk about, through a bold, riots and hilarious show.

Katie and Laura have worked with women and birth professionals to discover the real, funny, emotional, empowering, complicated and unique stories everyone has. Birth isn't always the dramatic trapped-in-a-lift event or the white and fluffy experience we're shown by the media and that this binary may be contributing to a very real sense of failure for a lot of mothers.

"We want our audiences to rewrite the rules together, every show, and we want them to have a fiercely brilliant time whilst they're doing it. Talking about birth feels like it doesn't need to be this hard. What if we could change that? What if we got rid of the pressure? It feels like we don't have the right words for something so complex and individual.". Katie Villa

The conversation continues beyond the theatre with STITCH, a pop-up exhibition of embroidered birth stories. The pieces have been created over a series of workshops with mothers, where they could share experiences and create beautiful and astonishing pieces which reflect their own unique birth story.

STITCH will continue to expand so contributors and attendees can all be part of a wider, national conversation. And it doesn't stop there - WILD is going to healthcare conferences too so professionals can be inspired to change their own practices.

Trigger Warning: the show contains references to birth, trauma and post-natal illness.

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TOUR DATES

Harrogate Theatre 22nd Feb 7.45pm
01423 502 116 www.harrogatetheatre.co.uk

Old Library, Bodmin 13/14 Mar 7.30pm
www.intobodmin.co.uk

South Street Arts, Reading 27 Mar 8pm
0118 960 6060 www.readingarts.com

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