"Portrait of Dora", by Hélène Cixous
July 16th, 17th and 18th, 2005, Buxton Fringe Festival - Pauper's Pit
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It's the autumn of 1899 in Vienna, and eighteen-year-old Ida Bauer has serious mental problems; self harm, contemplation of suicide, nervous habits and dark thoughts. Her father sends her to see his psychologist. The man he has entrusted with his daughter's 'disease' is none other than Dr. Sigmund Freud, the recent inventor of a new form of talking cure. Using Freud's pseudonym; 'Dora', this incomplete case history of 'hysteria' demonstrates some of Freud's breathtaking insights and yet exposes his masculine ignorance. Playwright Hélène Cixous creates the opportunity for actors to tell Dora's story in her way; through her dreams, and in her shadows.
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Graham M as Freud and Sarah W as Dora "These events declare themselves like shadows, in dreams. They often become so clear that we feel we can reach out and grasp them, but in spite of this, they elude any final clarification and if we proceed without skill or particular caution we find ourselves unable to determine whether or not such a scene ever really took place."
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"The father, Mr B, was a man of means, mild mannered, an affectionate father and a patient husband" (Cixous) |
"There will have to be a killing, it's a law."
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Athina, Rachael, Sarah W, Claire, Charli and Lydia
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