Centuries after their deaths, a mother and her two daughters reunite for the first time to come to terms with their wounds, their writing, and their reverberations through history.
Mary's Daughters tells the story of Mary Wollstonecraft, the 18th Century intellectual radical, and mother of Western feminism, along with her two daughters: the forgotten-by- history, illegitimate love-child Fanny Imlay, and the infinitely more famous, author of Frankenstein, Mary Shelley. This feminist ghost story plunges the audience into a fluid, poetic, whirlwind tour through the lives, legacies, and times of these three incredible women. Shaped and misshapen by each other, they swap stories and memories, each intercutting and challenging the narrative offered by another. We hear the tireless writings of a genius out of her time, two sisters trying to reconcile the emotional wounds only families can create, and the birth of an iconic monster on the shores of lake Geneva.
This play, written by Kaya Bucholc and Will Wallace, is a rallying cry for a world that centres radical kindness above all things.
Supported using public funding by The National Lottery through Arts Council England.
Playing at The Space theatre.
19th March - 30th March 2024
Tuesday - Saturday, 19:30 performance
Saturday, 15:00 matinée, followed by post show Q&A
Paul Dorrington
Simon Glancy
Shirley Anne French
Tom Hanson
Alex Quintana
Ruby Steel
Chris Steel
Christopher Pike
Phil Costick
Peter Ugle
After each of our Saturday 3pm matinée performances, 23rd and 30th March, we are very excited to be hosting a free half hour post show Q+A session with our cast, writer, and director. It will be a free form conversation welcoming questions about the performance, the history, or the process. It is also an opportunity to share your thoughts on the piece, about these women, or anything you wish to discuss.
Book your tickets here
Mary Wollstonecraft was a huge believer and advocate for a woman’s right to earn and make a decent living, and be able to support herself and her family. In this spirit, we are so excited to have partnered with the amazing charity You Make It.
Founded by CEO Asma Shah from her kitchen table in 2011, You Make It started as a funding-free programme, initially delivered to 20 women. Since then, it has continued to evolve into a powerful catalyst for change. It now reaches 75 women a year, and has grown from strength to strength, positively impacting the lives of over 500 women.
They exist because of the realities of intersectional oppression. If you're a young working class woman from a racialised community, you are a lot less likely to access what others take for granted to get ahead in life. They deliver human-centred programmes to empower young unemployed and underemployed women to access the social, cultural and economic life of their city. Alongside this, they support companies and established professionals to engage with and learn from young, underrepresented talent, facilitating meaningful connections and enabling young people to progress and thrive within the world of work.
The producers of Mary's Daughters are providing a paid internship to a graduate of the charity’s programme as well as 24 free tickets to charity members.
You can learn more about You Make It here. We encourage you to check out the work they are doing and consider supporting them if you are able.
Suicide
Death
Death in childbirth
Child death
Adult language
References to sex
Loss of one’s mother
References to domestic abuse
If you are concerned about attending the performance due to the topics listed, and would like to make an informed choice, please contact BiLLO or The Space and ask for our Trigger Warnings PDF, which contains the specific moments from the script for each topic. The document includes all topics, so you do not have to specify where your concern lies.
NB: the script excerpts are copyrighted and are only intended to help you make a more informed decision attending the performance; please do not share the document, or the script with anyone else.