Tiger Lady

A tale of one woman’s grit to tame the Big Cats… A tale of fame, danger and desire… of terrible heartache and pain… and a woman fierce enough not to be forgotten…

Mabel Stark, queen of the circus in the time of the greatest show on Earth, was one of first female tiger tamers, and the only woman to step into the ring with seven tigers! The crowd loved her! The men loved her! The tigers loved her! Now hear the tale of America’s most ferocious big cats’ tamer and discover will see that the scars on her body were not as deep as the scars on her heart…

'It's funny how the world turns on the smallest of things'

Tiger Lady began in 2019 and performed the first 20 minutes of it's R&D at Bathway Theatre in Woolwich. When the pandemic hit, Tiger Lady paused. In 2021 it picked up again with a cast change, and the show had a restructure and an ending. That year it saw audiences at St Mary's University Theatre, Greenwhich Theatre and Chelmsford Fringe Festival. In 2022, the show was due to perform for a few weeks at The Vault Festival, however due to a rise in Covid-19, the festival was cancelled.

Tiger Lady went back into rehearsals and the show was filmed for an online tour. Where it was shown to schools, societies and more. The cast joined for a couple of Zoom Q&A's too. In the summer, Tiger Lady performed at Edinburgh Fringe Festival for the whole month of August, at The Pleasance Courtyard, Above. Here the show gained multiple 5 and 4 star reviews and won "The Best Immersive Show" from Theatre Weekly. The show then performed at Greenwhich Theatre and St Mary's university in September.

In 2023, Tiger Lady saw international audiences! The show performed at the Edmonton International Fringe Festival, in Canada. Here the show sold out multiple times, gained a 5 star review and Tiger Lady was awarded the Hold Over Shows. The cast were also invited to speak on the radio and were invited on TV twice! In October, Tiger Lady embarked on a UK Tour. This tour is the first Tour Dead Rabbits Theatre have ever done, and it was a huge success!

Performers:

Mabel Stark – Natisha Williams-Samuel

Art Rooney – Abayomi Oniyide

Al G Barnes – Antonio Victorio

Louis Roth – James Parker

Maggie Speaks- Chloe Waddilove

Rajah- the Tiger – Eddie Breckenridge

Creative Crew:

Artistic Director: Kasia Zaremba-Byrne

Designer: Tina Bicat

Lighting Design / Production Management: David Hockham

Co-writer: Alex Byrne

Stage Manager: Leah Butterworth

Music advice and sound design: Greg Budden

Puppet Maker (Rajah) - Nadja Zaremba-Byrne

Design Assistant: Charlie Myers

R&D: Jodie Cuaresma, Callum Twigg, Sam Buitekant, Jordan Lim

"Narrative scenes are filled with brash, heightened characterisations and quippy nods to the audience, while bold images take shape with delightful suddenness. "

The Stage

full review