Josephine Lacey returns to the Fringe to reveal all on the bizarre places motherhood has taken her – and inflate a few balloons whilst she’s at it. Autism Mama draws on the lengths unconditional love has taken her, sharing her story with heart and reassuring familiarity. The hour follows her son Calum’s ascent into adolescence, navigating the confusion of puberty alongside the “field of autism” he sees the world through every day.
In the blaze of Fringe shows and nervous actors, Lacey leads audiences through her hour with assured confidence and clarity. With tried-and-true confidence, Lacey details her commitment to Calum’s right to living a full life – and colour-accurate phallic balloons. The hour centers around the outlandish things Lacey has done to care for her son; she interweaves the unusual and the relatable, the informative and the unbelievable with ease, and with the aid of a few graphic cards, you can be sure to be left with an enriched appreciation for motherhood.
Between each anecdote Lacey ramps up the stakes, spanning from when Calum, who had been non-verbal for the first five years of his life, started to speak only by mimicking his Southern Irish nan repeating, “Holy Mary mother of God and all the Saints in Heaven” (a symptom called echolalia), to realising she may have to be the one to teach her son how to wank.
Lacey holds the space of the room with clear and practised authority. In the tight setting of The Wee Room (the Three Sisters) you can expect terrifying eye contact and aerobically accurate spunk as Lacey proves the reality of unconditional love.
Autism Mama is running until 16 August at The Wee Room at Laughing Horse @ The Three Sisters. This is a free, non-ticketed show. Find out more here.
Image provided as press material.
