When two women met on a beach in September 2020 during Melbourne’s lockdown, they had no idea they were starting a movement. By December, sixty women had joined them.
They called themselves the Mt Martha Sea Wolves.
Sea Wolves Howl brings their extraordinary stories to life through vivid theatre and original songs. Five characters guide us through their daily ritual: waking before dawn, gathering on the shore, stripping down to their togs, joining hands so no-one can chicken out, howling like wolves, and plunging into the icy water together.
Each step of this journey offers particular physical challenges and evokes powerful stories. We meet women facing grief, illness, family violence, and social isolation. We witness their transformation as they discover that cold-water therapy becomes whole-life therapy— unleashing a wildness and playfulness that says yes to the universe with a mighty howl.
When they brave the wild sea, the differences that divide them on land are stripped away as they expose their bodies and souls to the water, to nature, and sometimes to each other. In this sacred space, they are seen, supported, celebrated and loved for their true selves.
Created through extensive interviews and conversations with the real Sea Wolves community, this work transforms their actual words into dialogue, monologue, song, image and movement. Featuring older female and gender-fluid performers boldly strutting their stuff in their togs, Sea Wolves Howl celebrates community resilience, the transformative power of nature, and the beauty of finding your wet and wild together.
Created from real interviews with the Mt Martha Sea Wolves swimming community. Sold-out seasons at Flinders Fringe 2024, presented at Showcase.
Sea Wolves Howl represents something truly special – a work born from genuine community connection that speaks to universal themes of resilience, transformation, and the healing power of collective experience. The demographic representation in this show – older women discovering new chapters of their lives – is both underserved in contemporary theatre and deeply needed
– Heidi Irvine, Head of Programming, Frankston Arts Centre
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