A Play About Sex: Women take centre stage in new sex survey
Hannah Farley-Hills is an independent theatre producer who wants to talk to women about sex.
Hannah has experienced first-hand how society often automatically centres men and marginalises women. She has watched people assume that her male colleagues are team leaders while she is dismissed as “too young” or “too green”, and she’s no stranger to surprised comments like “I can’t believe you know how to do that!”, when people realise the extent of her talents.
Hannah Farley-Hills. HFH Productions.
“I think being a young woman in the theatre production world is, unfortunately, the same as being a young woman in any other industry,” Hannah tells me.
“I have had to fight to be taken seriously.”
Despite it all, she doesn’t seem jaded, and she has a lot of hope for the next generation of theatre makers. “Most of the time I work in very diverse rooms with very open minded and respectful people,” she explains.
Accustomed to creating a better world through the art of theatre, Hannah has taken on a new project that will encourage women to take centre stage on the subject of sex. She calls it A Play About Sex.
This week, the project launched a national survey inviting women to talk about their sexual experiences - with themselves, a partner, or multiple partners. This research, followed by a series of workshops and focus groups, will facilitate a co-operative production process between women, theatre professionals, and academics, to create a nationally touring theatre show.
The most important thing for Hannah is that the project is informed by a wide range of perspectives. She says, “I have a steering group of brilliant women helping me guide the project and ensuring that there are lots of voices in the mix not just mine.”
“We want as many women as possible to benefit from our focus groups, interviews and workshops, and to feel an affinity with the show.”
The survey is aimed at all women, regardless of age, anatomy, ethnicity or disability, and welcomes stories on all kinds of sex – be it positive, negative, or somewhere in-between.
“Women hold themselves back, condemn their fantasies, foreclose on what they really want and sell themselves short on the idea that sex and love must look a certain way.”
Whether it was the condom-on-a-banana lesson at school, women’s magazines, or porn, the way young people learn about sex has historically left a lot to be desired. As a result, even in 2021, there’s still a huge gap in the mainstream understanding and celebration of women's pleasure.
“I definitely think our conversations around sex are getting better,” says Hannah. “I recently binged the latest series of Sex Education on Netflix and loved its honest, inclusive storylines. However, I think these conversations are still quite generational and are definitely not mainstream in porn, at school, or in most households yet.”
Hannah hopes A Play About Sex will encourage women to explore their own preconceptions, fears, and desires around sex. The website now hosts an online resource hub offering knowledge, support and advocacy for all women to access.
Collaborative projects like this are shaping a new generation of theatre. They demonstrate the amazing potential for live art to platform marginalised voices and improve the dialogue around the issues that impact all our lives. Hannah believes “the beauty of the arts is, in most cases, that it breeds broader thinking.”
“I’m really excited by the new generation of theatre makers that’s coming up right now. There’s so much experimentation and diversity in their work.”
A Play About Sex invites you to create space for yourself and consider your relationship with sex education and intimacy. All your stories are valid.
If you identify as a woman, live in the UK or the Republic of Ireland, and want to anonymously share your experiences with sex – please do! Visit www.aplayaboutsex.com to complete the survey before 16th January, 2022.
Check out Hannah’s theatre production company HFH Productions. You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
Art by Ellie Farley-Hills. Quote by Katherine Rowland, The Pleasure Gap.
