Pill



by Rebecca Phythian
20:30 on 21st Jan






“Depression and anxiety from hormonal contraceptives may not be the experience of every woman, but that doesn’t mean it’s not the experience of your friend, your daughter or your partner, and of many women out there, who, in reading about this could have their lives changed for the better.” – Holly Grigg-Spall


Pill, an autobiographical one-act play, tackles the contraceptive pill and its mighty list of side effects from a first-hand experience. Through it’s episodic style and use of verbatim story-telling, Pill’s aim is to prompt women into action when it comes to the help and guidance they receive about sexual health, specifically contraception



CREATIVE TEAM:

Writer and Directed by Rebecca Phythian

Performers: Adam Martyn and Rebecca Phythian

Production Company: Blue Balloon Theatre


Founded at LIPA in 2016, Blue Balloon Theatre is a Manchester based, non-profit theatre company which acts as a platform for actors, poets and creatives to develop and showcase their own work. With an aim to make theatre, arts events and opportunities accessible to all, Blue Balloon Theatre offers an encouraging space for creatives to utilise their voice in the most authentic way possible. The productions we make prompt social discussion in areas that need it the most. We Need To Talk: A Jazz Cabaret, celebrating sexuality and indenting through Jazz Music received an Off Com nomination for Best Fringe Show at the 2022 Manchester Fringe along with a 4* North West End Theatre Review. Pill completed its first tour in 2022, as Rebecca and Adam ventured to the Greater Manchester Fringe Festival, FUSE International Festival and Clapham Fringe Festival, receiving two 5* reviews along with hosting a Q&A post show in Manchester which allowed the audience to express their personal experiences with the Pill, how the piece spoke to them and ask any questions about the progression of the show and its wider audience. Along with theatrical productions, Blue Balloon Theatre have facilitated writing and performance workshops for The Super Slow Way, Leeds Poetry Festival and The Girls Youth Network at the Royal Exchange Manchester. The have performed in collaboration with Malandra Jacks and Manchester International Festival and host regular spoken word and poetry open mics in Manchester and Heaton Park, for which they received a special mention for Best Regular Spoken Word event at the 2022 Saboteur Awards. Writer and Producer of Pill, Rebecca Phythian is a Manchester born Actor, Singer and Poet and graduate of The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts where she was recipient of The Andrew Lloyd Webber Scholarship and selected to represent LIPA at the Sam Wanamaker Festival 2017.



★★★★



"A show that should be taken to schools to spread further awareness"



- LOST IN THEATRELAND



REBECCA PHYTHIAN



Writer, Director and Performer





Working predominantly in theatre, Rebecca’s credits include Thorn at 2017’s Greater Manchester Fringe for which playwright, Tim Keogh won Best Newcomer. Thorn then went on to further performances at theatres including Oldham Coliseum. She performed in Feelgood Theatre Production’s, Dracula, at Heaton Park in 2019 – an immersive, open-air production. Most recently, Rebecca took on the role of Jack in Salford Arts Theatre’s 2022 Pantomime of Jack and the Beanstalk. Alongside Rebecca’s acting career, her debut poetry collection, Perfect Mess, is to be published early 2023 with Bent Key Publishing.





ADAM MARTYN



Performer






Adam Martyn is a South Yorkshire based actor and graduate of The Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, whose work has covered a variety of mediums, including theatre-in-education, pantomime and film. Adam was due to star as the lead character of Nicholas Saunderson in the brand new musical No Horizon, in 2020. But a certain little world event happened that year that has put that tour on hold… but not for much longer! Outside of acting, Adam runs a YouTube channel, creating a variety of content to an audience of over 21,000 subscribers. Topics covered on his channel include Doctor Who, Now That’s What I Call Music and classic TV history, both home and abroad!



DIRECTOR'S NOTE by REBECCA PHYTHIAN



In 2016, I began to write down word for word conversations I was having whilst in the midst of getting the contraceptive pill and the exhausting rigmarole that came with it. I remember thinking, "Surely I'm not the only one to have experienced all of this" and found that writing about my experience allowed me to process how difficult it had truly been.


Fast forward 6 and half years and through extensive research, a practical dissertation, development workshops and a lot of open discussion: Pill has become a piece of theatre that represents so many women's experiences, as well as my own.


My aim with Pill has always been to prompt people into action over their sexual health and to help them retrieve the information they need with regards to contraceptives, and after 2 short, 15-minute performances of Pill back in 2018 and 2019, I realised the importance of this show. Not to mention that the Pill has never been spoken about at length in any published piece of theatre!


In 2022, we took Pill, at its full length, to three festivals around the UK, and the reactions from our audiences were nothing short of eye-opening. Those who had experienced problems with contraceptives and sexual health care suddenly felt seen and important discussions were raised about how we can continue to share this story and reach a wider community of people.


A constant source of inspiration throughout the Pill's journey has been this quote from 'Sweetening The Pill' author, Holly Grigg-Spall:


“Depression and anxiety from hormonal contraceptives may not be the experience of every woman, but that doesn’t mean it’s not the experience of your friend, your daughter or your partner, and of many women out there, who, in reading about this could have their lives changed for the better.”


It sums up everything Pill is and its core purpose and highlights why this piece will continue to be relevant for years to come. With that, I am very proud to present to you, Pill



PHOTO GALLERY



CAT HUMPHRIES PHOTOGRAPHY








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