MAMA LOVE Comes to Edinburgh Fringe Next Month
Performances run 3 – 28 August.
By: Stephi Wild Jul. 11, 2022
A one-woman show in which Lea Whitcher plays with the absurdities of the idealised and toxic images of motherhood through her own personal experiences. Against the backdrop of the 2020 Swiss vote on granting new fathers a whole two weeks' paternity leave (18 years behind the Brits' oh-so generous offer) Whitcher links her lived experience with current discourses on motherhood, thrashing out a path through a jungle of everyday situations, social clichés and quizzical utopian models of life in a society beyond the bounds of patriarchy. Part stand-up comedy, part theatre, this show takes a sharp pop at what we consider ok in the name of 'love' through the lens of a new mama.
Lea Whitcher said, "I became a Mama in 2019. My partner was there around the clock for the first couple of months and I barely made it through. When Switzerland voted to change the parental leave for fathers from one day to two weeks, I was speechless. It seemed like an absurd farce. For me this shows how toxic gender stereotypes still run our politics. Fathers are being withheld the chance to connect with their children in an early age, and mothers are expected to do it all themselves: the triple task of caring for a newborn 24/7, running a household and healing their own torn up bodies. The nuclear family is already such an inconvenient system, and care work just keeps getting more and more devalued. It's time to speak up and fight for a new, gender neutral understanding of mothering."
Lea Whitcher (she / her) is a Swiss-American performing artist based in Zurich. She studied acting in the Bachelor and Master program at the Zurich University of the Arts. During her studies she received talent study awards from several foundations. Since 2012, she has been on the road as a freelancer, realizing theatre and film projects in various collaborations in which she derives, writes, acts and plays music. Together with Jane Mumford, she founded the satirical music riot comedy duo 9 VOLT NELLY in 2017. Since 2020 she also runs her own production company BLAIR WHITCHER PROJECTS, with which she produced her first solo show Mama Love. In her work she focuses on the tightrope walk between humour and abyss, between research and utopia.
Swiss Selection Edinburgh is to return to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this summer, once again showcasing some of the most exciting and innovative artists across Switzerland. All UK premieres, this year's shows take an unflinching look at subjects spanning motherhood, male violence and personal testimonies of shame, each inviting audiences to share and reflect on urgent issues currently rippling through Europe and beyond. Solo performer Lea Whitcher, duo Trixa Arnold & Ilja Komarov & performance company Pintozor will all be bringing an eclectic mix of multi-disciplinary work to the festival tackling challenging subject matters in unusual ways. Pro Helvetia are proud to be presenting Swiss work at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. Throughout the course of 2020 - 2021 the Swiss Selection have found many innovative ways to connect Swiss artists with the UK arts scene; virtual residencies, panel discussions and workshops, & producing a London showcase for the first time. The Swiss Selection Edinburgh 2022 marks a triumphant return to the fringe and to Summerhall, following in the footsteps of previous shows including Traumboy, Traumgirl 8:8 and 21: Memories of Growing Up.
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