Press
Mary’s Daughters, at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2025
Edinburgh, UK
“Beautifully tender…an undeniable must-see.” -★ ★ ★ ★ ★
“what is astounding about this show is how evident the scope of research, consideration and development that has gone into it. Having both written and starred in Mary’s Daughters, Kaya Bucholc is a force of nature not to be reckoned with. Both her acting and writing abilities are transfixing. … Whilst a deeply sad tale, Bucholc’s writing demonstrates consistent consideration (evident in all aspects of the play) by striking the balance of humour with the true tragedy of this historical play. To make such sadness so palatable is a skill.”
Madeleine Morgan, EdFringeReview, 03/08/25
“I would give standing ovation after standing ovation for this five-star show.” -★ ★ ★ ★ ★
“The play begins with Kaya Bucholc's Fanny Imlay, referencing herself as Wollstonecraft's first 'forgotten daughter', yet she is anything but forgettable in this performance. Her delicate switches from child to adult are heart-breaking … I find myself unable to breath in the achingly beautiful intensity of her final moments on stage.”
Lauren Williams, EdFringeReview, 03/08/25
“The performances are uniformly strong. The three actors deliver fluently connected work, with a direct, no nonsense script that rarely misses a beat.” - ‘Excellent Show’
In my home city of Brighton, many of us often walk down to the pier to watch the murmuration. Just to feel something stirring. That is what happens in this piece. Something stirs. In one moment there is synergy, in the script and these three connected souls join up and the wordplay becomes a together-dance. In another, conflict, accusation and anger erupt and, through movement, physical stage placement and dialogue, the three break apart and fragment. It all makes for compelling drama.
FringeReview 05/08/25
Interview with Paul Levy, Fringe Review:
Listen here
Winners of Fringe Theatre Awards’ EFFTA Award
“The Fringe Theatre Awards congratulate Kaya Bucholc on being awarded the EFFTA Award for the production of Mary’s Daughter at theSpaceTriplex.”
Portia’s Julius Caesar, at the Space Theatre:
London, uk
“A phenomenal retelling of this well known play.” -★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Portia (Kaya Bucholc) fabulously stands out in a beautiful blue dress, with the rest of the cast in black. She is the centre on which the entire story spins, despite it being about Caesar. Her performance was heartfelt, dynamic and with much pathos. Her desire for peace and her fear of losing her husband and newborn lead to catastrophic consequences for all.
Theatre and TOnic, 13/04/24
"A stripped-back, powerful production”
-★ ★ ★ ★
“Kaya Bucholc’s Portia… [is] particularly strong in a script that mixes Shakespeare’s words (not just the play, but also sonnets and poems) with folk music.”
LouReviews, 18/04/24
Mary’s Daughters, at the Space Theatre:
London, uk
“A poignant tale of strength, resilience, and the enduring power of familial love.” -★★★★
“All three women deliver heart wrenching performances as women scorned by men in their lives or history…Bucholc’s commanding voice and strong presence suited the character written out of history and cast aside, as many outspoken women were.”
Curtain Call Reviews, 26/03/24
“We are all MARY’S DAUGHTERS… A powerful call to arms on behalf of three remarkable women.”—★★★★
“The performances are uniformly excellent – the actors work brilliantly together as a family group, with the sisters convincingly vying for the mother’s attention. In a play that could be over- dense with ideas, the clarity and focus of delivery ensure that we remain gripped and transfixed throughout.”
The Peg, 24/03/24
“Clever, touching, and beautifully presented.”—★★★★
“Bucholc shows her acting chops as well as her writing chops as Fanny – her ability to find comedy in Fanny’s story means her more emotional moments are even more impressive.”
A Youngish Perspective, 24/03/24
Bard in the Yard, Will & Co:
london, uk
“Funny, Moving, Immersive”
★★★★
“Our bard for the show’s premiere was the talented Kaya Bucholc, who literally lived the play, […] Hilarious and engaging as a tormented Will facing “99 problems and counting”, bouncing and desperate in equal measure, singing and dancing along the way, she completely astounds the audience with her performance.”
The House of Yes, at The Hope Theatre:
London, UK
photo by: lhphotoshots
“A Twisted Treat”- ★★★★
“All the performances are suitably heightened without escalating into the realms of the grotesque. […] Kaya Bucholc brings an Amy Acker perkiness to Lesly, the good-natured Pennsylvania girl who unwittingly gets entangled with this messed-up brood.”
The Stage, 11/10/19
“Impeccably Scandalous”-★★★★★
“Bucholc, who has to indulge their weird attention out of politeness as poor Lesly, is strong in her meekness. Her simple root clash with the privilege that’s permeated her fiancé’s life and, as his secrets come to light, she struggles to understand their codes of conduct, stressing her role as an outsider.”
Broadway World UK, 13/10/19
“Unmissable”-★★★★★
“Kaya Bucholc impresses as the unassuming Donut King waitress from a poor background who finds herself in the midst of a situation she simply wants to escape. She joins Mr Lambert in a brilliantly executed bedroom scene that proves the best of the show.”
Act Drop, 11/10/19
“Super-Stylish Production”-★★★★★
“Bucholc performance as wronged fiancé is genuinely bewildered and utterly heartfelt.”
The Review Chap, 19/10/19
“One of the finest displays of acting and direction I’ve seen all year”-★★★★★
“There’s a dark magic here and a team of performers who are utterly within their roles—there’s no room to hide as audience or performer with the players standing amongst us[…] Lesly (Kaya Bucholc, so energetically committed as the play’s most identifiable character, experiencing The House through our eyes), a “civilian”, a working class girl from Pennsylvania who has no name just a lot of character […]The House of Yes is mad good fun with a hundred zingers in the text all delivered with deathly deadpan by Parker’s posse of perfect performers.”
I Thank You Theatre, 17/10/19
More Praise for The House of Yes:
London Pub Theatre’s Standing Ovation awards 2020 winner for “Outstanding Theatricality” and finalist for “Best Production”
Top 3 London Plays of 2019, Reggie Awards, Everything Theatre
Critics Choice Best Shows (Top 3) of 2019, London Pub Theatres
Top 9 Plays of 2019, The Review Chap
Top 10 Shows of 2019, London Theatre Reviews
The Gut Girls, at The Alumnae Theatre:
Toronto, Canada
“Funny, Poignant, Political”
“Really lovely work from the ensemble, which shifts adeptly from comedy to drama throughout this compelling—not to mention timely—story. […]Bucholc’s Maggie, like Polly, has a big heart under that devil-may-care attitude; a gut girl veteran, she’s supporting her mum and umpteen siblings—and must make a hard choice in order to keep life and limb together.”
Life with More Cowbell, 21/01/17
“The Original Nasty Women”
“I defy you to watch and not feel galvanized to action(…)After you’re done participating in the Women’s March, go see The Gut Girls. It’s a punch to the gut, and an awful, offal story that needs to be told.”
Mooney on Theatre, 22/01/17
Antigone, at The Alumnae Theatre:
Toronto, Canada
“grotesquely beautiful and darkly comic tragedy[…] Antigone is a work of Art”
“Bucholc gives a moving and compelling performance as the doomed heroine. Rough and tumble, unapologetically conscientious, brave and defiant; she seeks no permission and asks no forgiveness – but struggles with her protective feelings for her sister Ismene (Carly Telford) and lover Haemon (Christopher Oszwald), in great pain over how the consequences of her actions will hurt them.”