Collector of Tears and Other Monologues

An epic love story for our times. Unable to age until she has cried, Tanya must collect the tears of others in glass bottles down through the centuries and through her stories, bear witness to the pain and suffering of the people. Taking both male and female lovers, Tanya is an outcast, hunted by those who misunderstand her, until the day comes when she finally stands up to be counted and learns how to cry.

Sean Burn is a writer, performer and outsider artist with a growing international reputation. Actively involved nationally in disability arts, he was shortlisted for a DaDaFest disability arts award in 2009. In 2011, he completed a major residency at the New Gallery Walsall in association with DASH (Disability Arts Shropshire) to 'reclaim the languages of lunacy'. He is currently artist / mentor in residence to Celf o Gwmpas, Wales. He is one of only five disabled writers nationally to be selected for Write to Play - a year long development programme (2014) with Graeae Theatre, the National Theatre Studio, the Royal Court Theatre & Soho Theatre.

"Sean Burn's Collector of Tears is a sweeping epic of a monologue that traverses centuries yet concerns itself with the most intimate of emotions. Full of surprising poetry, an artful weave of half-remembered myths, it is a theatrical Orlando for our times." --Colin Teevan, Professor of Playwriting, Birkbeck University

"A beautifully poetic script by Sean Burn... This fascinating and compelling piece of storytelling is by turn subtle and intense, understated yet compelling." --UK Theatre Network

"The play covers a huge swath of history from the point of view of Every(wo)man. There is great personal intimacy set against the major events so we never feel this is in any sense a history lesson but a personal voyage of discovery with which we become deeply and empathetically involved. Moving and often amusing, this is a beautifully written and performed piece of work." --British Theatre Guide