Dr. Niamh Shaw's new theatre show The Diary of a Martian Beekeeper is coming to Dublin's Smock Alley Theatre on 13th March 2018.
Niamh is an Irish scientist who wants to go to Mars - among the many things she has done to help her realise her dream include spending two weeks a simulated space lab in the middle of the Utah desert, and visiting Space City to do a zero gravity flight... Now she has written a play that imagines her life on Mars in a space colony. Here, she writes for Culture about her very own space odyssey.
For as long as I can remember I have loved everything to do with space.
My whole family did.
That was our thing.
Fascinated together by moon landings, the planets in our solar system, the moon and the stars in the night sky.
And science fiction too, of course. This was a big part of our family weekend viewing: Doctor Who (behind a couch usually for me, as I was terrified of those Daleks), Buck Rogers in the 21st Century, Gemini Man, The Invisible Man, Star Trek.
And, of course, Star Wars. Which my brother John took me to see in the cinema in 1978, with his confirmation money. Now, that was a moment!
Another moment was the first time I set eyes on the iconic image of the earth from the moon, Earthrise, taken in 1968 on NASA's Apollo 8 mission - Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins' Apollo 11 mission and the life-changing moon landing had yet to occur the following year, in July 1969.
This Earthrise picture was the first time we, as a species, saw our planet in its entirety. It is said that it profoundly affected people at the time and spurred the beginning of the environmental movement.
The first time we saw that our planet was vulnerable. Hanging in the back void of space. A living, breathing thing, that protected us from the harsh environment of space by a paper thin atmosphere. A mere 100 kilometres above us. When I saw Earthrise for the first time, even at 8 years of age, it had a lasting effect on me.
And my obsession with space began.
But there was no-one in my direct line of sight who showed me how I could become a part of space exploration. There were no astronauts hanging around the Dundalk Shopping Centre in the 1980's. And because I couldn't find my path to space, I told no-one, and tried to forget.
But it never went away.
And in 2011, making my first theatre show about science and my life choices, I remembered. This time, I decided to do something about it. And so it began. I've been actively pursuing this goal since 2014. Meeting with astronauts, engineers, and scientists involved in space exploration. Visiting the European Space Agency Working as an artist at Blackrock Castle Observatory. Reading, exploring writing. And the more I researched, the more I realised how many people are involved in putting just one person into space. Hundreds of thousands of people. Years of planning, training, researching. So many people who have devoted their lives to contributing to solving just one piece of a much bigger puzzle.
My third theatre show, Diary of a Martian Beekeeper explores the power of this collective in space exploration - and the sacrifice of the individual within that, to achieve a greater good for man and woman kind. Its set in the future where I'm on Mars conducting research on bees (l learned beekeeping from Dad last year), inspired by my own simulated Mars mission at the Mars Society's Desert Research Station at the high Utah desert, and interviews with astronauts and employees at the European Space Agency.
I want to represent just one of those great people of the story of space. Who may seem insignificant in isolation But together, they are a part of an extraordinary feat that transcends human existence. So far, there have been just over 540 people who have been in space. But hundreds and thousands of people were a part of making this happen. It is really an incredible feat, that we can propel these tiny humans out in to space. That we have put a man on the moon. That we took a picture of our planet from a distance. And that we are planning on returning to the moon and even Mars in the next 30 years. Everyone working together to keep these astronauts alive when they leave the cradle of Earth in such harsh environments.
No oxygen. No atmosphere. No water. No food. Extreme temperatures. And exposed to high levels of radiation. Most importantly, in so much isolation.
We live on a planet that is perfectly suited to our survival. We can take it for granted sometimes. I'd love the chance to share that view with you all.
Our beautiful Pale Blue Dot.
Earthrise.
The Diary of a Martian Beekeeper runs at the Smock Alley Theatre from 13th March 2018 - more details here.
