Quite Unsuitable For Females

When the Amex Stadium was built in 2011, I went to see Brighton & Hove Albion play with my now husband. Much to his frustration, the actual football was the least interesting bit to me. What captured my attention was the swathes of people singing together, in time and in tune and with an overwhelming sense of commitment and emotion. ‘I couldn’t coach that if I tried!’ was my first thought as a singing teacher, this experience transcended all things ‘musical’ and was a truly refreshing example of singing ‘in the wild’. It reminded of the roots of song and using the voice, so often now touted as a ‘talent’ when really it is just a deep connection to human expression.

And so my infatuation with football began. From a roundabout starting point, I also started to enjoy the sport, but the community, emotion and reflection of political, socioeconomic, cultural state is what continues to interest me the most.

Fast forward 10+ years and moving to Lewes only has increased this. Lewes, or ‘Equality FC’ as they are fondly known, are the only team worldwide who resource their men’s and women’s team equally. It was after hearing a podcast with ex-director and wonder-woman-supporter, champion of women in ALL things Karen Dobres that I learnt about the FA ban on women in 1921. It was jaw-droppingly ridiculous to not have known about this before, I could not believe my ears.

Learning more about this incredible story alongside being immersed in the energy and culture of a club like Lewes FC inevitably led me to the idea of creating a theatrical, musical interpretation of this injustice. Collaborating with my mother who is already an expert in creating theatre out of stories of the voiceless (she is humble, I will not be so humble in shouting about her) we have embarked on creating a show; Quite Unsuitable for Females; The FA ban.

Quite Unsuitable For Females is a play/musical/show (who knows yet, I’m not sure I can call it a musical…though it may end up being…) about the FA ban, and how this type of inequality is devastating on both a personal and global level. We’ve just received funding from ACE for r&d to explore how to best tell this story. I can’t wait to get started, full of fervour and fever (and a healthy dose of imposter syndrome, but more on that later).

B x