Thalidomide!! A Musical

"Thalidomide!! A Musical" is a British musical written and composed by Mat Fraser, who was born disabled as a result of the drug thalidomide being taken during his mother's pregnancy. Fraser and Anna Winslet play all the roles in the show.

The musical premiered at the (London) Battersea Arts Centre's Octoberfest in 2005 and has since played across Britain and at festivals in Cardiff and Versailles, France.

The production tells the story of a love affair between Glyn, a thalidomide victim (Fraser) and an able-bodied woman, Katie Crawford (Winslet), attracted by his phocomelia. Fraser calls the story a "cartoon version" of his own life. Winslet won the role, in part, because she did not shirk at an audition request to mimic Fraser himself. [ [http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/story/0,11710,1636104,00.html Mat Fraser on why he felt compelled to write Thalidomide!! A Musical | | Guardian Unlimited Arts ] ]

Musical numbers

* "Monster Babies"
* "It's Hard To Hitch Down Life's Highway With No Thumbs"
* "Talk to the Flipper ('Cause the Face Don't Care)"

Reception

The Daily Telegraph summarized the show as "sharp and original, but not for the squeamish". [ [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2006/02/03/btthal03.xml&sSheet=/arts/2006/02/03/ixartleft.html Sharp and original, but not for the squeamish - Telegraph ] ] One Wolverhampton councilor, Malcolm Gwinnett, criticised the show, arguing that, "To exploit people in this way is, frankly, sick", while Fraser said that, "It makes "Jerry Springer" look tame".

References

External links

* [http://www.thalidomide-a-musical.com/ Official site]