Presented by Heretic productions The
‘Like Jesus, I have lesbian parents. Most people don’t seem to realise that Joseph was actually a woman, a very successful lady carpenter.’
The play tells the story of Jordan Waller who was born of lesbian parents in 1992. When one of his mothers died, he had an existential crisis. This show is the true story of his hunt for his biological father, despite that by law he is not allowed to find out who he is.
Actor and writer Jordan Waller, known for Darkest Hour (2017), Victoria (2016) and Off The Rails (2019), has his debut stage performance in the
We asked him how different performing on stage is to when he performs on television.
‘The screen is smaller and the editor makes the story. On stage, you’re the sole storyteller – with the help of a director” Waller explains, “I’m lucky to have such a brilliant one in Max Gill. So it’s daunting but a more immediate storytelling experience.”
Why did Waller decide to write the play?
“Aside from the undying need to please my absent father, I think I wrote the play both as a personal catharsis and because there aren’t enough lesbians” he explains, “it’s about an existential crisis that ensued after losing my (lesbian) mother and going on a hunt for my sperm donor father to try to fill in the great void she left in her wake, so narrating that difficult period of my life helped to clarify a few things; while I also feel there aren’t enough stories that portray alternative family setups.”
“Mine is certainly unorthodox so I wanted to share that world with others to show how we’re all very bizarre” says Waller.
How challenging was it for him to write about something so personal?
“It was a challenge to mine the truth to get a clean and compelling narrative out of the maddening flux of real events. It was painful but also strangely healing.”
What does Waller want an audience to take away from this production?
“Hope,” he says. “I would like the audience simply enjoys exploring someone else’s world for a little bit – and hopefully appreciate all the good things in life. It’s a very happy story – in spite of all the death.”
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