Birth, the play

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About the play:
Kicking off on Labor Day weekend, 2007, the world will boldly go where no play has gone before: between the legs of 7 laboring women!Part of a worldwide production, held in more than 40 cities worldwide, the critically acclaimed theatrical hit Birth will take center stage through the month of September in 2 cities in North West Florida for the first time ever.
6 shows in the Florida Panhandle!
Pensacola, Fl.
UWF Mainstage Theater
Thursday August 30, 2007 - 8 pm
Friday August 31, 2007 - 8 pm
Saturday September 8, 2007 - 8 pm
Sunday September 9, 2007 - 2 pm
Fort Walton Beach, Fl.
Fort Walton Beach Auditorium
Friday September 14, 2007 - 7 pm
Saturday September 15, 2007 - 7 pm
Birth is a play based on over one hundred interviews Karen Brody conducted with mothers across America who gave birth between 2000-2004. It tells the true stories of 8 women painting a portrait of how low-risk, educated women are giving birth in America today.
In the play we meet Jillian, a stay-at-home mother of four children, who always sees the humor in life, especially in her mixed-bag of birth experiences; and Beth, a 35-year-old successful, high-powered computer systems manager from New Jersey who confidently planned a cesarean.
We are introduced to Vanessa, a buyer for a major department store who never had a doubt that she wanted an epidural. We hear from Janet, a lesbian in her 40s, who despite her feminist background wanted a medicalized birth, fearing the safety of herself and the baby; and Lisa, an African-American who felt intimidated and used by her midwives and the medical system after her birth.
We get to know Sandy, who thought birth was “just one day,” but found out that having an emergency c-section on that day changed her world. We hear Natalie's intimate story of physical betrayl; and Amanda, an athletic, confident stay-at-home mother who believed her birthing mantra--”My Body Rocks”--gave her the attitude she needed to give birth naturally in the hospital. Moving between first-person monologues, some dialogue, and the voices these women heard on the day they gave birth, Birth confronts, what City Lights Theater Company has called, "The naked truth about childbirth in America."
It's a show you won't want to miss... it could change the way you look, and laugh, at Birth.
Birth On Labor Day is...
* a global movement to make maternity care mother-friendly.
* grassroots events that use the arts to get communities to educate themselves, speak their truth and take action on maternity care issues.
* an awareness-raising and fundraising opportunity for groups, organizations and individuals to support mother-initiated dialogue and solutions to maternity care.
What is BOLD’s approach?
BOLD's approach to our mission is based on similar "theatre for social change" models (V-Day, The Innocence Project). Every September (and on Labour Days around the world) we support communities to perform Karen Brody's critically-acclaimed play, Birth and/or hold a BOLD Red Tent event. The goal of each event is to engage communities in a discussion about how to improve their local maternity care issues. BOLD puts mothers at the center of solving their maternity care problems. At BOLD we ask mothers: what kind of childbirth conditions do you want? What do you deserve?
What does the BOLD acronym stand for?
Our acronym stands for Birth On Labor Day (BOLD). In 2006, BOLD’s first year, over 40 performances of Karen Brody’s critically acclaimed play, Birth, were performed throughout the world over 4 days during the American Labor Day weekend.
Why BOLD?
Playwright Karen Brody wanted to find a way to honor mothers’ birth experiences, get communities talking about their local birthing issues, and raise money for organizations and small groups who are working to make maternity care mother-friendly. “One woman dies every minute throughout the world from a pregnancy or childbirth-related cause,” says Brody, “As a writer I wondered, why are we not telling this story? And as an activist I wondered, how can we tell this story in a way that will make a difference, that will shift the model of maternity care for women to the mother’s needs?”