A glittering exploration of learning to live with an ever-changing chronic illness.
I was 23 when it came crashing into my life; without warning, when everything was going so well, just when I was really, really happy…
With 90s pop, a costume box and a whole heap of glitter, Bright Places is a darkly funny and deeply honest autobiographical story about growing up in the shadow of chronic illness. This award-winning play about Multiple Sclerosis, MS for short, not to be confused with M&S or S&M, is written by Rae Mainwaring and directed by Tessa Walker.
Bright Places will be brought to life by Lauren Foster (Holby City, BBC; Doctors, BBC; and Three Day Millionaire), Aimee Berwick (My Name is Leon, BBC2; Chase Tales, Birmingham Rep/ Inspiring Healthy Lifestyles)) and Rebecca Holmes (Kill List, Ben Wheatley; Kissing Miss Nightingale's Shadow). Associate Director Natallia Bulynia, (Killing Eve, BBC; Secret Invasion, Marvel; Queen of Tears, Netflix) who lives with MS, will double as the company understudy.
Frustrated by the negative depictions of people living with MS, in Bright Places Rae Mainwaring explores her diagnosis of MS aged 23 that turned her world on its head. This three-woman, one-woman show plays with a theatrical form that reflects the unpredictability of life with MS, looking at how to live your ‘best life’ with constantly fluctuating symptoms and a future that is impossible to predict.
Bright Places examines learning to live with this ever-changing chronic illness. The play’s title refers both to the white patches of the MRI scan that show the scar tissue which cause Rae’s symptoms and also the Bright Places in which she hides in order to cope - her fantasy escapes of disco, feather boas and pop hits.
In Bright Places, theatre meets rave, meets hospitals and endless naps. It is real and raw, hopeful and funny. Rae Mainwaring comments, So much of my life; living with MS is unseen. That’s a common experience so it’s exciting to finally make MS visible. Centre stage. People with MS rarely see themselves represented in an authentic way. This play delves into the complicated, knotty often contradictory relationship with an illness that is always moving the goal posts.
Presented by Carbon Theatre, in association with Birmingham Rep
Bright Places: 2 - 7 December 2024: Soho Theatre, 21 Dean Street, London
Tickets from £13 – BOOK HERE: Bright Places – Soho Theatre
UK TOUR: 24 October - 13 December 2024
Further Information & TOUR DATES: Bright Places — Carbon (carbontheatre.org.uk)