“Wax has an extraordinary mind, and she has bought it to bear with her trademark wit… a Ruby beyond any price” – Stephen Fry
Following her sell-out UK tours in 2014 and 2015 and a successful run at the St James Theatre, Ruby Wax– comedian, writer, mental health campaigner – is bringing her one-woman comedy show, Sane New World, to the Arts Theatre in London for a final run from January 19 – February 13.
Ruby has based this new show on her No. 1 Sunday Times bestselling book Sane New World: Taming the Mind, which has enjoyed worldwide success since publication in 2013.
Ruby Wax: Sane New World will help you understand why we sabotage our own sanity and provides a manual on how to survive the 21st century, using Ruby’s knowledge from her recent Masters Degree in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy at Oxford University, spiked with her trademark comedy.
Ruby said: “We are not equipped for this century, it’s too hard, too fast, and too full of fear; we just don’t have the bandwidth. Our brains can’t take so much information in a world where we’re bombarded by bad news and force-fed information. I can just about take in the weather then I’m exhausted. You open a newspaper, everyone’s dead. We’re only supposed to know what our neighbour is up to; if the woman next door to you is having sex with the man next door to her we need to know; but four doors down and it’s none of our business.”
Using her signature humour, Ruby gives a tour of the brain and how to tame it: “We know so much about how the world works – but so little about our how our own minds work. It’s like having a Ferrari on top of your head but no one gave you the keys.”
Walk in Sessions
During Ruby’s stay at the Arts Theatre she will also hold three free walk in sessions where the public can receive advice, ask questions and get help from:
♦ Peter Fonagy, Head of the Anna Freud Centre,
♦ Richard Burnet, an expert on mindfulness for children in schools, and
♦ Professor Russell Foster, a Professor of Circadian Neuroscience at the University of Oxford.
Ruby Wax, added: “It has always been my dream to have these centres where you can meet your people and therefore feel less isolated. These meetings aren’t necessarily for those with mental illness, but for those who feel they’re on the cusp of burning out or simply going up the ladder of ‘stressdom.’ Meeting other people in the same boat is almost half the cure. We are all so ashamed that we have vulnerabilities, all thinking we should be so strong and on top of things. This is so exciting for me to offer these centres; I know if we want to stop the stigma that there is strength in numbers.”
A team from mental health charity SANE founded by Marjorie Wallace CBE will also be on hand for personal help and advice.
Ruby’s new book A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled is published by Penguin Life in January 2016.
Details of the walk in sessions:
Dates: January 27, February 3 and February 10, 2016
Venue: Arts Theatre, 6-7 Great Newport Street, London WC2H 7JB
Time: 2-4pm (doors open from 1.30pm)
(No booking required)