From Feb. 22 through March 12, Forward Thought Theatre will perform the new play MEASURED at the Hope Theatre. Written by Emma O’Brien and directed by Cat Robey, MEASURED is a witty and raw exploration of the hidden effects of eating disorders on human relationships. It’s a funny, eye-opening, and deeply impactful play that will stay with you long after you step out of the theatre.
MEASURED follows the story of Sophie, a woman in recovery for an eating disorder, as she attempts to reconnect with her 14 year old sister and her boyfriend. The play’s focus is on the effect of eating disorders on relationships as opposed to the illness itself in order to present an insightful look into recovery without glamorising anything.
Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the play: the humour. With such a serious subject matter, it’s easy to imagine that MEASURED might be all business and no play, but it’s quite the opposite. There are several moments in the play that leaves the audience tittering in their seats. Director Cat Robey cites the lived experience of the author as a driving factor in establishing a balance between humour and seriousness.
“Because Emma (O’Brien) has lived experience, the topic is so raw for her, it’s her everyday life, she’s able to laugh,” Robey said. “Humour is often used by Emma as an example of sometimes that’s how you get through things. So when she was in recovery for example, morbid humour was a very big part of her life, that’s what helped get her through it, so she’s written with that hilarity.”
Beyond incorporating a level of humour, O’Brien’s lived experience also establishes a balance between presenting the subject matter in a truthful manner without being triggering for those who may relate to the topic. Robey discussed how O’Brien was able to accomplish this by focusing on the relational aspect of recovery, and not on the physical.
“Because she never ever talks about eating in terms of symptoms or anything like that, (O’Brien) has avoided mentioning triggering things at all. She never talks about what people look like. She never talks about the illness. She never talks about the obsession with food. It looks at the relationships that are affected. That’s why it’s not very triggering because she’s written from a place where she doesn’t want to be triggered herself and she doesn’t want to trigger people she knows,” Robey said.
MEASURED is the main headliner for the Measured Festival, a larger event surrounding mental health awareness presented by Forward Thought Theatre. Between comedy acts, performances and spoken word, the Measure Festival is the perfect avenue for expanding upon a conversation sparked by the play.
Robey explained that hosting the festival in addition to the play felt quite important to the team because they wanted to include people from diverse backgrounds and to offer an opportunity for anyone and everyone to feel more connected and represented.
“So many narratives look at the stories of young white women specifically with eating disorders. What we all wanted was to foster a much more diverse conversation, not just around eating disorders, but around the different people who suffer from eating disorders and other mental health issues which come in so many different forms,” Robey said. “The festival is a much more diverse look at all of the issues that are encompassed in that big umbrella of eating disorders and mental health.”
All of the profits from the Measured Festival will go to Beat and Rethink Mental Illness, charities supporting people affected by mental illnesses and eating disorders. Tickets can be reserved at https://www.thehopetheatre.com/productions/measured/.
