Play links Victorian parachuting tragedy with billionaire’s Mars ambitions
Hannah McPake’s play *Balloon Girl* links a Victorian ballooning tragedy with a modern billionaire’s ambition to send people to Mars. Through comedy and time travel, it satirises tech-bro culture and reality television while asking questions about climate change and humanity’s use of planetary resources.
The story draws on Louisa Maud Evans, a 14-year-old from Bristol who died in 1896 after being carried out to sea during a parachute stunt above Cardiff. In the play, tech tycoon Carol Gaudron, a descendant of the balloonist who recruited Evans, wins a rocket trip to Mars and journeys through time with a young navigator and a talking seagull. The production is at Cardiff’s Sherman Theatre until 24 October.
- A Cardiff play connects a Victorian parachute tragedy with a modern Mars mission.
- Its time-travelling satire targets tech ambition and reality television.
- The story also raises questions about climate and planetary resources.
New here? Start with this
In 1896, 14-year-old Louisa Maud Evans from Bristol died after a parachute stunt above Cardiff carried her out to sea. The Victorian era saw public ballooning and parachute displays draw crowds, but the equipment and safety measures were limited.
Balloon Girl connects Evans’s story with modern plans to send people to Mars. Its central figure, fictional tech tycoon Carol Gaudron, is descended from the balloonist who recruited Evans; the play uses time travel and comedy to explore ambition, technology and how people use the Earth’s and other planets’ resources.
Art Climate Culture Fashion Geopolitics Politics Science Space Technology Travel
Read the full article at the source →
Originally published by The Guardian as “Balloon Girl review – tech tycoon swirls with tragic teen parachutist in a thrilling, time-travelling climate romp”.