I'll Tell You This for Nothing - My Mother the War Hero

Phyllis JasonSmith was one of only two NZ women ever to have been honoured with France's highest decoration, the Légion d'Honneur, for extreme bravery in WWII.

And she was my mother.

We grew up on war stories of bombs screaming overhead as she and other QA nurses crawled around the hospital tent on their knees among the constant stream of wounded and dying soldiers "... the only light our tilly lamps, the only water a barrel outside the tent door."

Not all her stories were tragic, in fact most had a lighter side, a twist, a punchline. And then there was the love story, woven through her tale like a ray of hope. Phyllis was vivacious, courageous, humorous, haunted by the war until the end of her long life.

In creating this 70-minute solo performance, I've been blessed with the talents of director Jan Bolwell and dramaturge Deb Filler to bring to life Phyllis's tales of war, courage, romance and danger.

Kate JasonSmith

Premiere: BATS Theatre, Wellington. September 18th -22nd 2018      BOOK HERE

Celebrating New Zealand Playwrights and 125 Years of Women's Suffrage.

"The extraordinary that lurks just under the surface of otherwise ordinary lives, is endlessly fascinating and dramatic, and this tale is no exception." Gaylene Preston

The talented team:
Director Jan Bolwell,
Dramaturge Deb Filler,
Designer Lisa Maule,
Stage Manager Neal Barber
and
Producer Shirley Domb.

How you can help:
After the Premiere Season at BATS of 5 nights, I'll Tell You This for Nothing - My Mother the War Hero plans to tour both NZ and overseas. To achieve this aim we need high production values. Our team are highly talented and working for a fraction of their real value, but real cash is still needed for staging and mounting.

We are producing this important play independently. We'd be incredibly grateful if you could help us raise the remaining $3,000 we need.

Biography: Kate JasonSmith has worked in professional theatre, film and TV since she was a teenager - as an actor, designer, producer and director. She was the creator and producer of the iconic women's comedy company Hens' Teeth.