A REVOLUTIONARY tale of how a group of women broke the mould and challenged the stifling conventions of Edwardian Britain will be in the spotlight this weekend.
The Brewery Young Actors Company stage The Gut Girls by Sarah Daniels which follows the lives of friends who work in the gutting sheds of the cattle market, where they earn more in a week than they would in a year of domestic service.
Their lives are changed - for better or for worse - by the charitable intervention of the affluent Lady Helena, an aristocratic woman who hopes to help the girls out of what was seen as an "unwomanly" profession and into the far more ladylike profession of domestic service.
Centred around women's rights, classism, and the girls' control in their own futures, The Gut Girls is a funny, serious, and necessary take on how society views women with much contemporary relevance.
Abbi Lawson, who plays Lady Helena, said they've really enjoyed putting The Gut Girls together especially as the story was relevant to contemporary society and the characters interesting and relatable: "It's both humorous and, at times, serious, but the whole process has been interesting and eye-opening. We’ve also all been involved in making the period costumes which has been fun.”
The Gut Girls runs at Kendal's Brewery Arts Centre on Friday and Saturday (7.30pm) and is part of the Brewery’s special Inspirational Women series celebrating women in the arts, industry and science.
Still to come is Where There’s Muck There’s Bras, a new show from poet Kate Fox celebrating the north’s finest female politicians, entertainers, sports stars, activists, writers, innovators and mould breakers, playing the Brewery on March 22, and Vulvarine by Fat Rascal Theatre, on April 3, a comedy piece about an ordinary woman who transforms into a superhero when her HRT goes drastically wrong.
On April 25, Unsung explores the untold and under-acknowledged stories of four pioneering and inspirational female figures from the past and on May 10, Smoking Apples Theatre brings Flux to Kendal, an innovative puppet show about a female physicist forging a path in the male-dominated world of science
Brewery box office 01539-725133.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here