The Camden Fringe Interviews
TOMBOY Productions on My Female Husband
It has been said that “history is written by the victors,” or in reality, it is the version of events told by those who are in power. This often means that women’s voices aren’t always recorded in history. TOMBOY Productions brings us a little-known event in queer history and considers the female voices that largely went unreported.
My Female Husband marks TOMBOY’s debut show, which will play at the Old Red Lion Theatre from the 22nd to 24th August for Camden Fringe.
Welcome TOMBOY Productions, so who’s who?
My Female Husband is brought to Camden Fringe by TOMBOY Productions, a new London-based queer theatre company made up of best friends Billie Billington, Phoebe Grove and Eliza Jones. For this show we are lucky enough to be working with the brilliant Frank Bertoletti and Katie Driver, our two talented actors.
Billie Billington (they/them) is the writer of My Female Husband. Billie is a writer and theatre maker from East London with an MA in Playwriting. Their work explores queerness, ritual, the stories we tell and how we tell them. Billie’s writing has been performed at Octagon Theatre Bolton, Hope Mill Theatre and with companies: SwitchMCR, Mortar & Pestle and BangAverage Theatre. Their two short films I’m Cold and Hopeless Romantic won Best Picture and Best Screenplay respectively at the MAP48 competition.
Frank Bertoletti (he/they) will be playing the role of The Husband. Frank is an actor, cabaret performer, jazz musician and clown. His credits include performing at Ronnie Scotts, The Bill Murray Comedy Club, The Southbank Centre, The Phoenix Arts Club and with The National Youth Jazz Orchestra. Frank trained at L’Ecole Philippe Gaulier and has an English degree from the University of Cambridge.
Katie Driver (she/her) will be playing the role of The Wife. Katie is a performer and recent graduate from the Central School of Speech and Drama, where she trained in Acting (Musical Theatre). Here she featured in several productions, from stage plays such as Julius Caesar and Metamorphoses, to musicals including London Road and Curtains. Last summer, she performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with the play The Fruity Prince, a queer historical comedy about Queen Elizabeth I.
What can audiences expect from the show?
Billie: Sex, scandal and deception! The show is based on the real life court cases of Female Husbands in the 18th century, cases that scandalised the nation, where wives came forward and accused their husbands of being women. It’s a camped up and flamboyant court-room drama set in the heart of Victorian East London that explores how we remember and tell stories of trans people in history. Prepare yourself for genre-bending fun but also maybe a little heartbreak. It is a love story at its heart. Or maybe a break-up story would be more accurate… we are not responsible for any texts sent to your ex after watching this show.
Billie, as the writer, what brought you to this story then?
Billie: I read Jen Manion’s historical book Female Husband about two years ago, which is where I found out about female husbands and their wives. I was completely obsessed by these cool, suave and sexy masculine people, going on adventures and falling in love.
But it was the wives of these people that really made me want to write the play. As Manion points out in their book, it was the husbands that have been remembered but their wives often go forgotten, their motives and their dreams left out of history. I wanted to write a play that explored why a wife of a female husband might have given up their partner to the public: why they would abandon someone they had built a life with and quite probably loved!
I am also so inspired by Charlie Joesphine and Kae Tempest’s writing as two amazing non-binary playwrights who explore gender and history in such deep and engaging ways.
Frank and Katie, as performers, what was it that drew to your roles?
Frank: I love the gender fluidity of my character, The Husband. I get to play Henry, a ‘female husband’ who’s innate understanding of, attraction to and distrust of masculinity is a fascinating co*cktail to portray. I also get to play the fantastic Woman Scorned, Ruby Wright. Performing these changes back to back, truly is a gender spectacle! Lots of taking up and discarding.
Katie: My character, The Wife, is usually a voiceless character, but this play gives her the chance to lead the narrative and end her painful grief cycle. The play explores a super interesting theme and the multiple characters I get to play are incredibly exciting; they are so varied and have such depth.
Is Camden Fringe going to be the show’s stage debut?
Billie: Yes! Omg scary! We are a brand new theatre company so we have very much been learning on the road but it’s such an amazing experience. It’s so brilliant to see Phoebe direct and be able to bring their background in music arrangement and composition to the project! And without Eliza the whole thing would literally not be happening – if she hadn’t decided she loved the play enough to spend hours looking for rehearsal space we wouldn’t be here today!
What made you decide to be part of Camden Fringe this year?
Katie: Fringe theatre is super exciting to me as I love how passionate people are and how far they’re willing to push creative boundaries.
Billie: The play takes inspiration from Victorian music halls: spaces that created theatre for the people. Theatre that was outrageous, dirty and fun but also boundary pushing and where those who didn’t fit society’s norms could find community. I think Camden Fringe functions in a similar way to how these music halls used to, giving people the space to find community and new exciting theatre… not just another Disney film put on stage.
What is it you hope the audience will take away with them from the show?
Katie: I hope they feel intrigued by the subject matter and feel empathy for the characters and their perseverance in the face of such prejudice and punishment.
Billie: I hope they think: ‘How interesting! You know what, this would be a great 10-part TV-drama! I’ll call my best friend, the head of Channel 4!’
Is there one question you feel we should have asked you?
Katie: I wish you’d asked us about the costume design of the production.
Frank: Seconded – the costume ideas by our designer Fran are exceptional and I cannot wait.
Will you be frequenting the bar after the show each night for a chat for people to ask questions?
Frank: I hope they say, gee Frank, what can I get you to drink? And then proceed to offer our lovely queer team a three week run off-broadway.
Many thanks to Billie, Katie and Frank for taking the time to chat. You can catch My Female Husband when it plays at the Old Red Lion Theatre between 22nd and 24th August. Further information and tickets available here.
