LORNA MEEHAN
Co-Creative Director
Lorna's role at RoguePlay is as a performer, co-creator and co-director. As a poet/spoken word artist, she writes much of the poetic narratives that form such a distinctive part of the creative output, including her adaptations of ‘Measure for Measure’, ‘Blood Wedding’ and her original poem ‘3am Waitress’ which we adapted into a high energy dance theatre piece that received a 5 Star review at Edinburgh Fringe.
Since graduating from De Montfort University with an MA in Contemporary Theatre, Lorna has worked with organisations such as Apples & Snakes, Shakespeare's Birthplace Trust, Metro-Boulot-Dodo, Women and Theatre and Outspoken.
'What inspires me most about the work we do is using cross-genre art forms to make accessible and innovative work that empowers women. Bringing up subjects from their lives that are shrouded in silence to the forefront to encourage solidarity and promote change'
As well as her work with RoguePlay, Lorna works as a professional actor, performance poet and solo theatre maker. She is also a playwright with experience in directing. Her one act play ‘The Engagement’, a costume drama parody written in rhyme previewed at Birmingham Theatre Festival where she also performed her debut solo show ‘Brazen’ an autobiographical coming of age journey through the nature of idolatry and the transformative power of music.
Trailer: https://youtu.be/Dv4gbiXfUuQ
In 2016 she directed and co-produced Ten Letters, an intergeneration spoken word performance about Birmingham with the best of the cities poetry talent that premiered at MAC.
She has also performed at national events and festivals such as Glastonbury and Ledbury Poetry Festival, and toured with Apples and Snakes Performance Poetry Organisation. Lorna is an experienced voice over artist and drama and poetry workshop facilitator, inspiring young people to speak their truth and collaborate.
She is currently developing her second solo show ‘No Entry’, an interactive autobiographical piece about female sexual dysfunction, the big deal with virginity and how the myths we take as truth about sex can seriously hinder our well-being. The show will be previewing at Camden Peoples Theatre ‘Calm Down Dear’ Feminist Theatre Festival when it is rescheduled for 2021.
You can watch the trailer here: https://youtu.be/_fANOWyNpYw
An article by Lorna about her life with Vaginismus, a common psychosomatic disorder that is rarely talked about and often misdiagnosed:
http://www.vaginismusawareness.com/blog/my-story-my-life-with-vaginismus
She is also working on several feminist adaptations of classic Greek myths focused on giving voice to the forgotten heroines and goddesses behind the 'heroes' of the ancient world. Look out for ‘Wild’, an audio spoken word experience based on the myth of Ariadne and Dionysus, which will form part of RoguePlay’s upcoming podcast series.
Her solo work on focuses on themes of candid confession, overcoming trauma, myth busting social conditioning around sex and ultimately welcoming vulnerability so you can be your happiest self. ‘Brazen’ and ‘No Entry’ are available for touring throughout 2021.
You can listen to her poetry here: www.soundcloud.com/lornameehan
and see more of her work on her Lorna Meehan youtube channel
Twitter: @LornaEMeehan