Maenad

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Elena Sirett

PRESENTS

25 Feb 2024

The Spacement at The Glitch

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Maenad

In ancient mythology maenads are the female followers of the god of wine, partying, violence and madness: Dionysus. The maenads are women driven mad by the gods' presence, participating in rites, dances and orgies, drinking and tearing unsuspecting men to shreds with their bare hands.

Today, long after Dionysus left the city, one Maenad remains. One Maenad is cursed, rooted to a hillside, angry, hungry and howling.

This show is the story of that Maenad, told through poetry, spoken word, monologue, comedy and folk-punk music. Just like Maenad herself this show is multitudinous, chaotic and unwieldy. It explores addiction, performance, gender, sexuality and mental health. It contrasts the myths that are projected onto our bodies with the ones we ourselves pick-up and cling to. It questions and deconstructs the often unconscious processes of self curation.

PERFORMANCES

17:00

Sunday 25 February 2024

The Spacement at The Glitch

ADDITIONAL INFO

Access features:

No Step-free Access

Age guidance:

18+

Running time:

55 minutes

Festival strand:

Theatre & Performance

Gripping, Thought Provoking, Empowering, Offbeat, Poignant, LGBTQ+

Swearing, addiction, drug and alcohol use, eating disorders, self-harm, mental illness, gender dysphoria, references to physical violence and sexual activities (including mentions of kink and BDSM play).

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Elena Sirett

Elena Sirett (they/them) is an eclectic writer, performer and musician. They enjoy adapting ancient myths for our contemporary lives, they enjoy yelling and screaming while playing acoustic guitar, they enjoy revealing and conveying the queer, neurodivergent and mentally ill psyche through a combination of written and musical styles. They are currently working in theatre performance, zine making and storytelling.

Katie Overstall (they/them): Katie is a dramaturg, director, writer and performer, with a particular interest in non-naturalistic theatre, including performance poetry and storytelling. Katie is the co-artistic director of The Underground Clown Club.

Chloë Lawrence-Taylor (she/her): is a playwright and dramaturg from Oxford. She is an alumnus of the Royal Court Theatre, the Old Fire Station, Broken Silence Theatre, the National Young Writer’s Programme at Pentabus Theatre, and is currently part of the Long-Form Playwriting Group at the Royal Court Theatre.

PRESS & REVIEWS

Praise For Maenad

The Reviews Hub- 4.5/5 Stars: "Maenad, is a bleak, brutal, and brilliant meditation (...) Sirett’s beautifully crafted poetry is sometimes slow and reflective. At other times the words spew out like an erupting volcano (...) The singing style is breathless, urgent, and full of fury. (...) 60 minutes of near-perfect fringe theatre."

Charlie Wood, Performance Artist: “Maenad is a raw and genuine piece of work [...] It is a defiant look at abuse and exploitation at the hands of men, at addiction and mental health and those who are victims of all these things but as a piece it does not feel self pitying [...] It has a steely optimism in the face of a difficult world.”

Anna Papadimitriou, musician (HAWXX): “Maenad had me crying, laughing and feeling liberated by Elena’s fierce boldness and powerful vulnerability. It was raw, devastating, hilarious and invigorating.”

CAST & CREATIVE CREDITS:

Writer/Performer/Producer: Elena Sirett (they/them)

Director/Dramaturg: Katie Overstall (they/them)

Dramaturg: Chloë Lawrence-Taylor (she/her)

A Pinch of VAULT is a festival of brand new and work-in-progress performance. Shows will be at varying stages of development, including rehearsed readings with script in hand, first time on its feet or semi-staged.