Period Dramas

A solo show about the hidden history of menstruation

Pleasance Courtyard, The Cellar, Venue 33 , 3 – 21 Aug 2022 (not 10 & 15), 14.10(15.10)

After a childhood obsession with history, blood and period dramas – of both kinds – Heather Milsted became increasingly frustrated by the lack of discussion of all things menstrual in both the history books and popular culture. Period Dramas is the history show she wishes she’d seen, filled with unsanitary sanitary towels and bloodied bloomers. The show follows Heather in a chaotic and all-embracing celebration of self that teaches audiences the history they never learnt in school, from ancient Egypt right up until today. Bringing together cabaret, comedy, spoken word and a hint of tap, Period Dramas is a surprisingly personal romp through the ages.

Have you ever wondered how people in the past dealt with their periods? If Queen Victoria coasted through her cramps? What if period dramas really were about... periods? Armed with glitter, blood, some history books and an arsenal of embarrassing stories, Heather's on a mission to push through the menstrual taboo and change the way people think about bleeding. Audiences are invited to embrace themselves fully, let loose and have a "bloody" good time! At the end of each performance, there will be a bucket collection in aid of charity Bloody Good Period.

Writer and performer Heather Milsted said, “I was utterly convinced that Elizabeth Bennett would start leaking as soon as Colin Firth emerged dripping from that lake, because well, obviously that's what would happen to me in that situation...I'm the sort of person who leaks on their first date and who started menstruating before anybody else in their entire school and let's face it I still haven't got a clue what's going on down there”.

Heather Milsted is an actor, writer and facilitator who trained at ALRA & with the Young Pleasance and with the Soho Theatre Cabaret & Drag Lab, following a history degree at the University of Warwick. She creates taboo-busting, cross-art form work that is chaotic and all-embracing, telling stories that are too often pushed to the side. Her writing has been staged at The Pleasance, The Rosemary Branch & Redgates Theatre. Currently receiving CREATE’s Nurturing Talent Bursary, Heather is passionate about empowering through the arts.

Jessy Roberts is a theatre maker, director and playwright. She studied Theatre at The University of York, and completed an MA in Directing at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. She is Literary Assistant at Soho Theatre, an Associate Writer of Middle Child Theatre, Artistic Dir. of Teastain Theatre & Associate Dir. of Rondo Theatre. Recent credits include dir. Untitled Sparkly Vampire Play (Omnibus Theatre), assist. dir. Broken Lad (Arcola Theatre), dir. Girls With Wings and Trauma (Bomb Factory Theatre), writer & dir. Hitchhiker (Rondo Theatre), dir. I Hate Alone (The Wardrobe Theatre), dir. Messy Eaters (Teastain Theatre/SLAP Festival/York Theatre Royal), assist. dir. Horseshoes for Hand Grenades (East Riding Theatre

Running Time: 1 hr | Suitable for ages 14+