| | SEE ALSO |  | BBC Beds, Herts and Bucks Theatre Beyond Brookside - read our interview with Sarah White Entering the Toddler Zone: by Julia Hames, the Hertfordshire woman who's got everything but can't remember where she put it! | | | WEB LINKS | | Milton Keynes Theatre Mum's the Word Tour National Childbirth Trust
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites. | | | ESSENTIAL INFO | | 12-17 July 2004 Mon-Thurs: 7:30pm
Fri & Sat: 6:00pm & 8:30pm Tickets: £10.00-£23.00 Box Office: 01908 606090 ABOUT MUM'S THE WORD
Mums The Word is an award-winning theatre piece written by six women who have endured the agonies and ecstasies of parenting. Both funny and poignant, it deals with the trials and tribualtions of having children and the overwhelming effect they have on your life. It includes all the important elements of childrearing with which those who are already parents will immediately identify, including every parents daily immersion in bathwater, food, spit, snot, blood, vomit, urine and faeces. Starring Sarah White (Brookside), Rebecca Wheatley (Casualty), Kim Hartman ('Allo 'Allo), Maureen Nolan (The Nolans), Polly Highton (Brookside) and Julie T Wallace (The Life and Loves of A She-Devil), it hangs the dirty nappy laundry of maternity out to dry!
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| | Mums the Word is a fun night out which spotlights parenting at its best and worst! Six actresses tell well staged anecdotes in monologue form and in doing so highlight the trials and tribulations of being a mother. From puking and pooing to the foolishness of taking your child to a restaurant, the observational humour had the audience at Milton Keynes Theatre howling with the laughter of recognition and virtually rolling in the aisles - but if like me, you arent privy to the secret knowledge of motherhood, then laughter may just pass you by!  | | The cast of Mum's the Word |
Sarah White was excellent as Deborah, the mum who thought that she could just carry on as normal post-children, while Rebecca Wheatley brought the house down as Linda, who tries with little success to explain to her partner what her days at home with the kids are like. I enjoyed Polly Hightons trip to the pool as Barbara, the woman who just wants a bit of peace and when some of her actions took even the rest of the cast by surprise, the audience were in fits again! Maureen Nolan was Jill, the woman who enjoyed her wine bars, parties, theatre and art galleries before pregnancy took her by surprise, and her calm portrayal of the sometimes over anxious new mother gave me some hope, should the worst ever befall me! Apparently the observational comedy was brilliant - or so I was told by some mothers at the interval! But to be honest, I am not a mother and therefore much of the evening was spent putting up with what you have to put up with every day! i.e People laughing hysterically at things that you just dont get - and don't want to either!!  | | Rebecca Wheatley with Alexandra |
I think there was more for me in the second half when the team worried about turning out like their own mother (something that troubles me every day - sorry mum - just kidding!) And I also found some of the more poignant moments quite heart-rending - especially Kim Hartmans character Alison describing her experiences of the special care baby unit, and Julie T Wallaces moving story about her grandmothers handicapped child. For the most part, the evening confirmed that Im really not keen on the idea of having children, and in feeling like that I am also some kind of lesser mortal. But I also realised that for mothers - and fathers - the night is a great shared experience and would recommend it to them! |
