Indra Wilson's one-woman show Float, currently playing at the Gilded Balloon as part of the Edinburgh Fringe, offers a strikingly original take on pregnancy and pregnancy loss. The playwright uses space travel as an extended metaphor, charting a journey from lift-off to orbit and on to a moment of crisis. What could have been a gimmick instead sustains a touching exploration of an intrepid adventure undertaken but never completed.
Wilson, writing from personal experience, subverts expectations from the outset. Their character is not ambivalent about motherhood but eager for the voyage ahead, with a mother who is similarly delighted. Dressed in a spangly astronaut costume and a helmet lit from within by Adi Currie's inventive lighting design, Wilson embodies an enthusiastic explorer ready for the stars. Their boyfriend, referred to as Nasa, is less convinced, questioning Wilson's age, responsibility, and addiction to cheese crackers. His eventual departure leaves the mission to be completed solo.
The production, presented by F-Bomb Theatre and co-directed by Cora Bissett and Niloo-Far Khan, is part of the Made in Scotland showcase. It remains more weightless than earthbound even as it confronts grief and the difficulty of explaining the loss of an unborn child, particularly to those whose own missions have succeeded. The space-travel frame prevents the piece from becoming maudlin, keeping the focus on the emotional vacuum left by an unfinished journey.
Wilson finds kinship with Astronaut Barbie, released in 1965 as a pioneer, rather than with Barbie's pregnant friend Midge or conventional husband Allan. For Wilson, parenthood is not about settling down but about embarking on a daring adventure. Float is a delicate balance of hope and sorrow, a poetic reminder that some journeys end before they truly begin.
