Let's talk about madness. This is one price where such words should be spoken.

It's normal to be weird, to be mad.

Welcome to the documentary In The Studio from the BBC World Service. I'm Felicity Finch and this week I'm

following a new play highlighting bipolar disorder called Mad Women.

I hope this play could help to fight the stigma, particularly about bipolar disorder,

and help people to understand that mental health conditions are more common than what they think.

That's the place Chilian playwright and director, Constanza Oler Shami.

I always say that I write not to be mad, to avoid madness, which is quite ironic, right?

Mad Women is a unique creative experiment.

A fictional portrayal of the struggles of the highs and lows of

of mental health, experienced by three outstanding early 20th century female Latin American artists.

What's different about this production is that the international creative team are working on two parallel

versions of the play simultaneously, one with the professional cast and the other with women

from a local community

who either themselves have experienced mental health challenges

or someone close to them will have done.

I love that it doesn't hide from taboos

and it's women saying exactly how they feel and I

think that's so kind of rare and brave of something to do and to be part of that is

a brilliant opportunity.

The three women the play portrays

our Mexican painter Frida Carlo, who with her

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