The City for Incurable Women

Paris, 1880s. In a psychiatric hospital, female patients performed ‘hysteria’ for the public. The doctors went to extraordinary lengths to prove their theories about the four stages of madness. Today, in the 21st century, the storyteller Kae, begins to explore this history. They trace the echoes to the present, feeling them linger in their own body, and perhaps get a little too caught in the story.

International theatre-collective, fish in a dress follows the thread of the history of hysteria in their critically-acclaimed show (★★★★ The Guardian, The Stage, ★★★★★ Theatre Weekly) as the audience becomes complicit in an outrageous tale of medical misogyny. (Warning: hysteria cure not included). 

Devised by fish in a dress. Supported by Goethe Institut and London Performance Studios. 

Performer – Charlotte McBurney 

Director – Christina Deinsberger 

Writer – Helena McBurney 

Set & Costume Design – Vanessa Sampaio Borgmann 

Sound Design – Bella Kear 

‘a high-precision performance, that crackles with vulnerability, confusion and intelligence’ ★★★★ The Guardian 

Age guidance 14+; This show contains strong language and distressing or potentially triggering themes, including references to emotional abuse, mental health, misogyny, sexual violence and sexism. 

Health notice: Live Flames, Loud Noises, Food/Drinks consumed by performers, Burning incense or herbs onstag