July 15th to … is a one-woman physical theatre piece about living with bipolar disorder, playing for one performance only at Theatro Technis on 11 November as part of Voila! Festival. It follows Ella, an artist whose mind swings between intensity and disconnection, and arrives in London after a run at Edinburgh Fringe 2026. Written by Juno Chen, directed by Angelina Voznesenskaia and performed by Peiyi Zhong, it was developed in conversation with Bipolar Scotland. Producer Stephanie Chu spoke to Red Bus Londinium about the title, building a character from lived experience and what she hopes audiences will take away.
Red Bus: The title is intriguing and unfinished. Where did “July 15th to …” come from, and what does the ellipsis mean for you?
Stephanie Chu: The title comes from the idea that Ella’s journey of living with bipolar disorder is an ongoing, unfinished process. Something significant happens on July 15th, but the ellipsis represents everything that follows: the continuing journey of living, healing, and finding a way forward.
I also didn’t want to give Ella’s story a definite ending. Living with bipolar disorder isn’t a journey that necessarily reaches a neat conclusion, so I wanted to leave the story open-ended. The ellipsis invites the audience to imagine what might come next, because Ella’s story doesn’t simply stop when the performance ends.
Red Bus: Ella is an artist whose mind swings between intensity and disconnection. How did you approach building a character from lived experience, and where did you give Ella a path that is different from the one that inspired her?
Stephanie Chu: We spent a lot of time in rehearsals exploring and developing Ella’s character. She reflects some of my own lived experiences, but she also represents people who are struggling, surviving, and finding their own ways to heal.
At the same time, Ella has her own language, her own story, and her own emotions. Although she may share experiences with others, she can also feel completely alone inside her own mind. We wanted to explore that tension between feeling connected to a wider community and feeling isolated within yourself.
We also introduced elements of the immigrant experience, drawing on our actress’s cultural background. This gives Ella another layer of identity and adds a different dimension to her journey. Ultimately, Ella is inspired by lived experience, but she is not a direct representation of any one person. She has become her own character, with a story that belongs to her.
Red Bus: The show is physical theatre, blending movement, music and fragmented storytelling. How did you decide which moments would be told through the body rather than words, and how do you keep the audience with you when the story is deliberately fractured?
Stephanie Chu: I believe there are some emotions that words simply cannot carry. Sometimes, the body can express something much more directly than language can, especially when we are exploring emotions deeply buried within Ella’s mind.
Physical theatre allows us to bring the audience closer to Ella’s inner world and invite them to experience what she is going through, rather than simply hear her describe it. There are moments when words are important, too, but when an emotion becomes too intense, confusing, or difficult for Ella to articulate, we often turn to movement and the body to tell that part of the story.
Although the storytelling is fragmented, there are threads that hold the piece together: Ella’s experience of living with bipolar disorder, her connection with her grandmother, and her determination to keep fighting for hope. These emotional connections help guide the audience through the fragments. We want them not only to follow Ella’s story, but also to feel as though they have stepped inside her mind.
Red Bus: You developed the piece in conversation with Bipolar Scotland. How did those conversations shape what is on stage, and what did writer Juno Chen and director Angelina Voznesenskaia bring to the way the story is told?
Stephanie Chu: Earlier this year, we had conversations with Bipolar Scotland, and those discussions were incredibly valuable. They shared their perspectives and insights into bipolar disorder, which helped us think more deeply about representing the experience truthfully through theatre. As we wanted to explore the reality of living with bipolar disorder, it was important for us to listen, learn, and reflect on how to translate those experiences into a theatrical language. Our conversations helped us consider how the subject could be communicated through movement, storytelling, and performance while remaining sensitive to the experience’s complexity.
Juno and Angelina also played important roles in shaping how the story is told, bringing the writing and direction together to create a theatrical world that allows the audience to experience Ella’s inner life. Juno’s script already carries the emotions that Ella experiences, while Angelina’s direction brings these emotions to life on stage, turning the storytelling into a representation of Ella’s inner mind. Together, they shaped Ella’s character and brought new perspectives to the story, creating a show that feels as though we are stepping directly into Ella’s mind. The aim has been to find a balance between one character’s deeply personal story and the wider experiences and emotions that audiences may recognise in themselves.
Red Bus: What would you like someone living with bipolar disorder, or someone close to them, to take away from the 50 minutes? And what about an audience member with no experience of it at all?
Stephanie Chu: Honestly, for people who are living with bipolar disorder, or who have someone close to them who is, I want them to feel seen. I want them to feel that their experiences matter, that they are not alone, and that they deserve understanding and support.
I know that some experiences are incredibly difficult to explain to other people. Sometimes, you might not even know how to explain them to yourself. So if someone watches this show and thinks, That feeling is familiar. Someone understands, then that means a lot to me.
For people who have never experienced bipolar disorder, I hope the show gives them a glimpse into a world they might not otherwise know. Not to tell them that everyone experiences it in the same way, but to help them understand that behind a diagnosis, there is a whole person, with memories, relationships, fears, dreams, and a life they are trying to hold together.
Representation is so important to me because theatre gives us the opportunity to step into someone else’s world, even if just for 50 minutes. We may not be able to fully understand another person’s experience, but we can choose to listen, to feel, and to try. I hope people leave with more compassion, for others, and perhaps for themselves, too. Because even when someone is struggling, even when they feel lost, there is still a person there who wants to live, to create, to connect, and to keep going. And I think that is something worth seeing.
Booking details
July 15th to …
Venue: Theatro Technis, 26 Crowndale Road, London NW1 1TT
Date and time: Wednesday 11 November at 9.00pm (one performance only)
Running time: 50 minutes (21:00 to 21:50)
Suitable for: 12+
Tickets: £13 full price, £11 concessions
Booking: https://www.voilafestival.co.uk/events/july-15th-to/
Like this article? Please stay around to read my reviews:
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- Review: Moment by Moment, Genesis Cinema ★★½
- Lambeth Fringe Review: Happy Hearts ★★★½
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- Review: The Hungry Ghost, Bush Theatre ★★★★
- Review: The Children, Lyric Hammersmith ★★★
- Review: Brown Suite, Richmond Theatre ★★½
- Review: DEEPFAKE, Sadler’s Wells East ★★★
- Review: Flamenc Oh!!, Peacock Theatre ★★★½
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