When the Bleeding Stops

A performance that breaks the silence surrounding menopause — with tenderness, humour, and unapologetic honesty.

When an injury forced Icelandic artist Lovísa Ósk Gunnarsdóttir to rethink her relationship with dance,  she began exploring the unspoken realities of ageing in the female body. Realising how little she herself knew  about menopause, she interviewed experts, pored over research, reflected — and eventually issued an open call. The response was immediate: dozens of women from across Iceland came forward, eager to share their stories.

Out of those conversations grew a warm, disarming piece that mingles stand-up, dance, and video to open a window onto women’s most intimate worlds. Oscillating between vulnerability and celebration, shame and laughter, Lovísa and a group of local performers invite us to greet this transformative rite of passage — hot flushes, mood swings, and dry mucous membranes included — with curiosity, compassion, and joy.