ROWENA HUTSON
Rowena trained at Rose Bruford College, London. Her solo arts practice incorporates writing, devised and physical theatre, detailed research and excessive doses of pop music to conjure worlds where we can have open discourse of feminist issues through laughter and community connection. Her works use elements of her own lived experience as a starting point to explore these larger issues through an empathetic and open dialogue. There is no fourth wall, and whilst Rowena encourages audience involvement and discourse, audience members are always asked if they consent to participation.
Rowena is particularly interested in creating safe spaces to share stories about the things that are generally left unsaid, the experiences that quietly breathe and bleed between our spoken worlds: grief, loneliness, shame and mental illness to name a few. Humour plays a vital role in her practice, allowing us, performer and audience together, to dive into difficult topics whilst allowing space for laughter at our shared absurdities and human conundrums and an empathetic investigation of the paper-thin line between tragedy and comedy.
In any Hutson work you can be 99% certain it will include at least one of her greatest loves: gigantic DIY props, handwritten signs, lots of 80s pop music and metres and metres of stretchy pink velour. To be honest - there's nothing like a gigantic, soft pink velour prop as a place for an epic backstage nap...
You can read about some of Rowena's more recent works below:
BROKE
Broke is a feminist comedy about mental health and dancing brains. Inspired by the writings of Carrie Fisher, women’s mental health experiences and Hutson’s own relationship with her brain, Broke is a hilarious and heartbreaking declaration of solidarity with anyone who’s ever tried to piece their mind back together again.
"There’s really been no panic attack quite like this showstopping rock
number with a large rubber brain."
- Keith Gow
"A self-proclaimed DIY nerd,
Hutson has built a space in which to have frank discussions about mental health."
- The Age
STRONG FEMALE CHARACTER
Strong Female Character is an all-singing, all-dancing physical comedy about what action heroes can teach us about growing up and growing breasts. Hutson combines storytelling, dance and a sweet Bruce Willis impersonation to tackle the subtle (and not so subtle) ways pop culture dictates who can be funny and flawed and what it takes to be a hero.
Drawing on her own experiences of questioning gender stereotypes, sexual assault and quiet heroics, Hutson illuminates the paradoxically positive, and ultimately joyful lessons that we can draw from our favourite heroes, whilst acknowledging the insidious power pop culture wields in shoring up archaic notions of gender roles and sexual politics.
"It’s inspiring to watch her at work"
- The Scotsman
“One of the most moving and provocative pieces of The Fringe this year.”
- The Clothesline
WINNER
Most Outstanding Comedy Show at Melbourne Fringe 2015.
A FOUR-EYED GUIDE TO THE GALAXY
Drawing on a life-long love of tacky DIY sci-fi sets and an obsessive desire to grow up to be Han Solo, A Four-Eyed Guide to the Galaxy explores the absurdity of the human instinct to dream of the stars – when every good space geek knows the place will probably kill you. It’s an ode to everyone who has ever dreamt of the stars and come crashing back down to Earth. It's about DIY rocket ships, loneliness, love and dogs in space. It's a modern day Icarus tale. And it's a love letter to the Universe and our very own spaceship, Planet Earth, made with deep affection and a lot of gaffa tape and cardboard.
Come for the spaceship, stay for the stars.
“Only the most special of storytellers can make an audience laugh one minute and want to cry the next. Rowena Hutson is one of those storytellers.”
- The Advertiser
"The crowd… is hanging onto her every word. Leaves the audience asking for nothing and completely charmed.”
- Great Scott