Join Edinburgh Humanists for a Fringe Show and an informal chat in the cafe afterwards.
Abigail’s mum is dead. But it turns out she can’t afford her to be. It’s £4,000 for the funeral. Extra for flowers. Even more if you want sausage rolls. Then, when a theatre suddenly pulls out of Abigail’s new project, she is asked to write about something else. Something more raw, from her “unique working class lens”. Yep. To afford the funeral, she has to write about her mum. With power and playfulness, Kelly Jones’s new play tackles the inequalities around death, and the cost of turning your loved ones into art. (Fringe Programme)
Playwright Kelly Jones commented: “Like most of my work My Mother’s Funeral: The Show is inspired by something true; a relative passed away and we couldn’t afford a funeral. Naively, I hadn’t realised we don’t all get treated the same when we die. I’d been brought up with the old adage that death is the leveller between the classes. That is not true: dignity comes at a high cost and those with the least (as always) have to pay the most. I wrote the first draft in a fury.”
Director Charlotte Bennett added: “I first met Kelly Jones through our open submissions process in 2022, and from that very first conversation, I knew the story she had to tell would be full of joy, anger, healing, catharsis and laughter. It has the feeling of a proper state of the nation satire about those who are so often left out of the national-political conversation; whose lives are hit hardest by austerity and the cost of living (and dying) crisis. In other words, it’s a story that we need to tell right now. To now bring this story to the stage with this incredible team to mark Paines Plough’s 50th birthday makes it all even sweeter.”
Post-show (at 4pm) we will be joined by Humanist Society Scotland Community Engagement Manager, and Celebrant Lara Celini for an informal chat in the MF COFFEE SHOP (formerly known as The Gallery Bar) you are very welcome to join us. Look-out for our table-top banner with the Humanist Society Scotland logo on it. You’ll be able to buy your own refreshments.
Sensitive Content: Contains distressing or potentially triggering themes, Strong Language/Swearing