Alex B Cann column - 21/05/26 Mothers and Daughters, and the benefits of the arts

I had a terrific Saturday night out last weekend, watching the quirky, funny and moving Mothers and Daughters by Paris Rogers at a lovely venue called The Edge in Chorlton. It's described as "a dark comedy about three generations, love, and the absolute chaos of meeting the parents".

Firstly, the venue is lovely. Shindigger beer on tap, set on a tree-lined street in the heart of Chorlton, it's a place with soul. There was an amusing moment when the fire alarm sounded during the production, and much ad libbing was required by the cast. It was dealt with deftly, and the director expressed her gratitude to the audience for being lovely!

Karen Henthorn and Isabel Ford star in a full-length version of a 15-minute piece that completely sold out, as their daughters Jenna (Tilly Sutcliffe) and Tasha (Ellaney Hayden) announce they are taking their relationship to the next level and moving in together. Cue a chaotic meeting of the mums, missed takeaway orders, oodles of poignant moments and a barrel of laughs. I have honestly not chuckled as much in a long time.

The cast of four kept things flowing for the full 70 minutes of this one-act play, which explores family dynamics in a clever, funny, moving way. I'll declare an interest at this point in the review...Karen Henthorn is a friend, and the character she plays in this production is a ramped up version of the kind-hearted force of nature that I know. I loved the scene with the burnt chicken, and the various failed attempts to order a takeaway, and the writing was beautiful, with the transitions from humour to reflection handled perfectly.

I really liked the one-act format too, and the 70 minute running time felt more like 7 minutes! You'd be bananas to miss this, and it's running until 30th May at The Edge in Chorlton. Tickets are reasonably priced, and there's a fab Chinese restaurant around the corner too called Water Lily!

Reflecting over some prawn crackers and a hot & sour soup, I thought about the benefits of seeing live theatre, in a busy world full of demands on our time, endless doom scrolling, and politicians paying for houses in cash, none of which are good for my blood pressure. People who go regularly to the theatre, live music events, museums, galleries and the cinema have nearly half the risk of developing depression, according to a study of over 2000 adults.

Indeed, neuroscience boffins have concluded that when we engage in the arts, we give our brain an effective way of regulating our emotions ; productions can be calming or invigorating, all of which helps us to deal with life's stresses more effectively. Amateur musicians and artists have stronger connections between parts of the brain that are vulnerable to ageing, and their brain images are identifiable as "younger", according to a brain clock study.

More on this stuff can be found in a book called "Art Cure : The Science of How The Arts Transform Our Health" by Daisy Fancourt, which was shortlisted for the women's prize for non fiction in 2026. Gillian Anderson said: "Elegantly distils the evidence for what we have always intuitively felt; that music, literature, cinema, and art are powerful universal remdies...a book for our times." I'm adding it to my birthday book wish list.

As you know, I go to the cinema every week, and however busy my workload becomes, I make a point of finding time for at least a couple of films in my schedule. It forces me to switch my phone off and not think about my "to-do list". Whilst not every film is a classic, I've seen almost 50 so far this year, and have no regrets. Well, nothing in 2026 so far has been as bad as the Minecraft Movie anyway.

I'm also looking forward to some summer gigs this year, including CMAT, Billy Ocean, and Gary Numan. Tickets are certainly not cheap for big artists, especially since they can no longer make as much money from music sales in an age of streaming, but there are also loads of smaller venues doing gigs that need your support.

The arts shouldn't be seen as a luxury, only accessible to some. The NHS received some opprobrium last year over stand-up comedy writing and performance courses being prescribed on the NHS, as part of a programme called "Comedy on Referral", but if it can help people with their mental health, I'd say it's to be welcomed.