'Tiddas' is a page-to-stage adaptation of Anita Heiss’ best-selling novel in a joint La Boite Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre and Brisbane Festival production.
It’s 'a love letter to Brisbane' about five women from diverse backgrounds, best friends for decades, who meet once a month to talk about books, life, love and the jagged bits in between.
When long-held secrets bubble to the surface and threaten to fracture everything, the friends are forced to question whether they truly know each other, and if sisterhood is strong enough to hold their bond together.
Read our interview with Anita Heiss here.
Here, the 'Tiddas' cast lists five benefits of sisterhood.
One
Share the good, the bad and the ugly. “I love that you can go through phases of life and share the good, bad and the ugly with each other. My best friends and I have so much dirt on each other, we can never NOT be friends. I’m also an age where my formative experiences were before social media, so I’m quietly relieved that none of that stuff ever popped up online.” Louise BrehmerTwo
An extension of family. “What I truly love about having a sisterhood is exactly that. . . They are my sisters. . . A beautiful extension of my family. . . Sisters to laugh with, to cry with, to sit in silence with, to hold hands with, to be consoled by, to be challenged by, to be loved and feel like I have my own fan club always cheering me on, understanding me for who I am and love me for that. But also a sister who, from a place of love, will be honest and will hold up that mirror should I need any of those tough reminders in life. A sisterhood keeps me grounded, feeling loved, listened to and just all round. . . Appreciated. I don’t know where I’d be without my own tiddas in my life. . . So to them, I say. . . Big love girls, and thank you from the bottom of my heart, for just being you.” Anna McMahonThree
Keep you grounded. “I am blessed to have my four siblings, my sisters. My older sister Deja, My twin Shareena and my baby sisters Rosie and Theirra. That's my sisterhood as I come from a family of five girls. My sisters, my tiddas keep me grounded, speak the truth even when I don't want to hear it and at the end of the day in my darkest moments of life's roller-coaster they are always there for me. Have always been there for me. My sisters/sisterhood keep me going, give me strength, always keeping me grounded in my culture and connection to country. Have shown me to be proud of who we are as Black women and own each and every space we walk into, because we belong and our voice matters – we matter. They have shown me true and honest love and have caught me when I fall but encourage me to get back up again even with a helping hand or a gentle nudge in the right direction. I'm surrounded by the gift of their love, wisdom, strength, laughter and pure honest truth that has always kept me grounded, kept me connected to my culture, to my country and helped me blossom into the woman I am today.” Shakira Clanton
Image © Morgan Roberts
Four
It's forever. “I love that with my friends no matter how busy we are, we make time for each other. But when we can’t get together and a long time has passed because life has got in the way, it’s as if no time has passed at all. My cousins and I have also formed a beautiful sisterhood, having been in each other’s life from the beginning we’ve formed such a close bond that I couldn’t imagine my life without them.” Chenoa DeemalFive
It's a celebration. The celebration! The celebration of you, of your sisters! Having someone accept you, hype you up, celebrating who you truly are. The dance! It's an honour to move through the world with someone who knows the rhythm and beats of your being, who dances with the music you make! The present! Having someone to listen, to ground, to say those words that only someone who knows you can. The joy! Having that sister to laugh with you, that laugh that rumbles through your belly! The smile! Having that energy around you that makes your soul smile.” Phoebe Grainer'Tiddas' plays La Boite Theatre (Brisbane) as part of Brisbane Festival from 5-24 September.
