MUTTON is the new play from Leeds theatre company Brave Words, exploring the rise and fall of the Yorkshire Witch. ‘Prophecy, poison and poultry’
It’s 1809. Mary Bateman is about to be hung for witchcraft and murder. Her career of crime has included fake identities, magic charms, poisoned pudding, a holy hen, drunk watchmen and – of course – a freshly-shaved leg of mutton.
It has been written by Brave Words’ artistic director, Chris Singleton. Chris: “When I heard about Mary, I was immediately captivated. The audacity of a woman pretending her pet hen could predict the end of the world!
In the early 1800s, people were living in poverty. They were scared by the rapid development of new technology. Mary’s witchcraft promised them a better life, offered them power and protection. People believed in her because they were desperate.”
Chris was writer in residence at Leeds Central Library in 2019 when he first learned about Mary. Six years later, the first performance of MUTTON will take place in the same room, before the show tours across Leeds and other parts of Yorkshire in November.
MUTTON is a dark comedy-drama, inspired by Fleabag, the League of Gentlemen and Brassic; a show about magic, firmly rooted in the North. It has been made by a female-led team, with director Lucy Campbell at the helm.
Lucy: “For me, it’s a story that is both contemporary and historical – a story about how women fight to thrive and survive in a patriarchal world. I’m very excited to be bringing our version of Mary’s story to audiences across Leeds and Yorkshire.”
The majority of performances of MUTTON will be pay-what-you-can, in line with Brave Words’ ethos of making professional theatre accessible for all.
To hear Mary’s story from the witch herself (and the beak of the Prophet Hen), catch MUTTON this November.
For the full list of shows and to book tickets, visit www.bravewords.co.uk/mutton
MUTTON is kindly funded by Arts Council England, National Lottery Heritage Grants and Leeds City Council through the Leeds Cultural Investment Programme.
All performances will be captioned via The Difference Engine, a tool that enables deaf and hard-of-hearing people to read performance captions on their phone. The first show at Leeds Central Library is BSL interpreted.
Age guidance 12+
https://bravewords.co.uk/mutton
Main image by Tom Woollard.
