Archives - Mammals

by Amelia Bullmore

Thursday 20th – Sunday 23rd February 2020 at 8pm in the Studio

A comic glimpse of the breeding generation

Jane and Kev’s lives are under siege – from their two tiny children, Jess and Betty. Every day is a chaotic whirlwind of dirty laundry, lidless pens and jokes about hairy fannies. The two little girls rampage through the house, turning breakfast into a battlefield and stretching their parents’ tempers to breaking point with deft emotional blackmail and threats about pooing their pants.

In the midst of all this frenzied domesticity Kev comes home and makes an announcement that will have devastating consequences. Family life starts to spiral apart and Jane is forced to watch, helpless, as her world deflates in front of her.

Add into the mix Kev’s best friend Phil who comes to visit for the weekend – a bachelor who has never embraced commitment, and careers relentless from one highly sexed, doomed relationship to the next. Phil brings along his snide and stylish handbag-designer girlfriend Lorna – completely unable to speak the language of children. The two couples struggle to find any common ground – one having opted out of the breeding generation and the other having devoted their lives to their children.

Mammals is a hilarious, touching, beautifully sad play about the sacrifices we make and the rewards of family.