THE MOMVERSATIONS PROJECT

mom·ver·sa·tions

[mɒm vəˈseɪʃənz]
noun
mothers reclaiming tough conversations about the messy and the beautiful realities of their lives

THE WORKSHOP PREMIERE

Join us for the workshop premiere of the National Women\’s Theatre Festival\’s first company-created work providing a glimpse into the messy & beautiful realities of motherhood in America. An ensemble of mother artists takes audiences on a journey through the joys, heartaches, and collective rage of mothers. Text created through the real stories, interviews, & improvisations of moms, The Momversations Project touches on everything from pregnancy to the rights of moms in the workplace to the right to choose.

PERFORMANCE DATES & TIMES

Friday, July 29, 2022 at 7:30pm

Sunday, July 31, 2022 at 2:30pm

Thursday August 4, 2022 at 7:30pm

TICKET INFO

Tickets for individual performances of The Momversations Project are available here. Tickets are available to attend virtually via live stream -AND- in person at the Titmus Theatre, Frank Thompson Hall, NC State Unversity.

JOIN US FOR THE MOMVERSATIONS PROJECT

AT FESTIVAL 22

Did you know that registration to the National Women\’s Theatre Festival 22 also includes admission to a performance of The Momversations Project? Join us for Festival 22 and The Momversations Project, either in-person or online, at NC State University.

THE NEED FOR MORE MOMVERSATIONS

Through The Momversations Project, NWTF centers the tough conversations surrounding motherhood in America today, addressing topics such as reproductive rights, parent separation, maternal mortality, and the challenges facing working mothers. We are creating this work to give moms and birthing persons a voice, raise awareness about the often hidden struggles they face, and challenge current cultural norms and public policy.

The Momversations Project is NWTF’s first company-created, multi-format work generated by, with, and for mothers. This podcast lays the groundwork for the theatrical production, a community devised play receiving its Workshop Premiere at the 7th annual National Women’s Theatre Festival in July 2022 at NC State University Theatre.

The Momversations Project consists of three distinct stages. The initial development process is a series of interviews with moms from a variety of backgrounds, as well as with medical and reproductive justice experts (many of whom are also moms). These interviews will be released in podcast format and serve as source material for the script.

With the interview and in-person content collected, the Momversations team will use both the collected verbatim text, movement-based devising, and traditional playwriting techniques to weave together key themes and stories into a final script. The play will then go into rehearsal before being presented at the 2022 Festival. 

Molly Claassen, freelance director and professor of directing at Columbus State University in Georgia, along with NWTF’s Executive Director Johannah Maynard Edwards head up the project. The Parent Artist Advocacy League (PAAL) is also an official partner. 

Combining theatrical storytelling with women\’s health advocacy and the human rights issue of reproductive autonomy, The Momversations Project is a landmark process and production for NWTF, the American theatre, and mothers everywhere.

LISTEN IN ON THE MOMVERSATION

The National Women’s Theatre Festival proudly launches their first podcast, THE MOMVERSATIONS PROJECT. The podcast, hosted by Johannah Maynard Edwards and Molly Claassen, includes a series of interviews with everyday moms, birthing persons, and folks on the front lines of the reproductive justice movement covering the topics and experiences that impact moms today. 

In Episode Seven, Johannah talks to Stephanie Martignetti, an abortion rights activist and Broadway performer about her experiences advocating for reproductive justice, the challenges she faced as a parent artist acting in a Broadway show while pregnant, and how our parenting choices as millennials can differ so substantially from previous generations.

Content disclosure: This episode features frank discussion about reproductive justice, including our support of a woman’s fundamental right to bodily autonomy. We discuss our views of abortion as essential healthcare. 

Listen below or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and everywhere else you get your podcasts.

HOW TO SUPPORT OUR WORK

Support the artists involved in creating this work. 
Your gift can make all the difference in the continued development of this idea, project, and team.