Middle-aged women take on Edmonton's 35th Fringe Theatre Festival
Zoe Todd | CBC News | Posted: August 14, 2016 4:00 PM | Last Updated: August 14, 2016
'If there aren't any parts for us, let's write them,' playwright says about roles for aging actresses
Wendy Froberg doesn't get Pokemon Go.
She came to that conclusion in the green room of a Shakespeare festival, surrounded by teenaged thespians glued to their phones. All the world's a Pokestop, it seemed.
"Sometimes the reality is you can't relate," the 58-year-old said. "It can be a little bit lonely sometimes, it can be a little bit challenging."
Even more challenging, she added, is finding meaty theater roles for middle-aged women. Lady Macbeth isn't for everyone.
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"Part of the reason I started writing plays was to rectify that," Froberg said. "To make sure I could tell my story and I could help other women tell their stories."
So she wrote the missing lines and scripted A Woman of Certain Age. Froberg describes it as a one-woman play about the realities of aging in a society obsessed with youth and beauty.
"There's not an awful lot of good roles written for midlife women," she said. "I think we just have to take the bull by the horns and say, 'If there aren't any parts for us, let's write them.'"
Midlife became her muse. Froberg wove a narrative of parenting, marriage and body image into a script for six aging female characters. She acts all their roles.
Froberg's play debuted in her hometown of Calgary last year. This week she's showcasing her work for an Edmonton audience at the city's 35th Fringe Festival.
Erika Conway plans to take in at least one of Froberg's performances.
"I want to see more women doing theatre and I want to see more parts for women," Conway said.
I want to see more women doing theatre and I want to see more parts for women. - Erika Conway, playwright
The 38-year-old Edmontonian started acting in high school, but said casting became increasingly difficult as she aged out of certain character types.
"There's this box that we get put in and it's easy for us to feel like we're no longer worthwhile and worthy to put our stuff out there," she said.
Conway is launching her own one-woman play, Confessions of a Middle Aged Drama Queen, at this year's Fringe Festival.
She hopes it sets the stage for other aging actresses, but said she also doesn't want to exclude young actors and actresses.
Rather Conway said she hopes to trade her two decades of experience for their youthful energy.
"It's easy to kind of go down the road of bitterness because you didn't make the break," she said.
"It's so important to actually look towards the younger generation and say, 'Hey, they've got some hope and some energy and some life that we need.' We just need to combine it."