Highly renowned Theatre Re embark on an extensive tour with their Edinburgh hit, Birth. This poignant piece of visual theatre, brought to life with incredible live music, explores inter-generational connections. Theatre Re is known for their acclaimed work that includes the hugely successful The Nature of Forgetting which has toured the world including sell outs in London, New York, Hong Kong, South Korea and South America.
Sharing the beauty and impact of Theatre Re’s earlier work, Birth uses the company’s compelling, physical style embracing mime, theatre and live music to explore family connections and what is passed down over generations.
Emily is eight months pregnant when she reads her grandmother’s journal. As she delves into the depths of her family history, its pages unveil a legacy of unspoken tragedies, courage and unconditional love. Birth traces the journey of three women from the same family as they discover self-acceptance, hope and strength in each other. Deftly tackling the sensitive topic of loss during pregnancy, the production explores the fragility of life.
Over a 15-month period, as well as drawing on personal experience and the interviews they conducted with families who have experienced such loss, Theatre Re have collaborated with neuroscientists and philosophers to ask the question ‘when does memory begin?’ Their work is distinctively rooted in the science, philosophy, theatre and real human experience. Throughout this 2020 tour, they will also be collaborating with charity Aching Arms whose aim is to raise awareness of the impact of pregnancy and baby loss and to bring some comfort to bereaved parents and their families.
Company director Guillaume Pige comments, Birth is about family, memory and secrets. Throughout the development process, we unearthed the parallels between our own lives and the lives of our parents and grandparents. We looked at the moments that have been an important part of family life for generations but we also looked at the smaller moments, those that we tend to forget, but that meant so much at the time and helped define who we are.
Established in 2009, Theatre Re is an internationally acclaimed ensemble creating thought-provoking performances. Intimate collaborations with experts in different fields and various community groups throughout the devising process play a crucial part in the development of their work.
