AN actress and mum who performs a one-woman show about the pressures of motherhood has taken her show on the road – quite literally.

Liz Hart from Hewelsfield Common entered the Brockweir Soapbox Derby along the route of her school run, with a ‘Don’t Wake the Baby’ kart, complete with giant infant.

And having run the gamut of brake failures and hairpin bends in a downhill rush, she raised £212 for the Home Start Monmouthshire young parents charity, which she handed over last week.

Liz, the mother of two young children, is part of the Lady Strong’s Bonfire all-women theatre company, and takes her one-woman show Mummy Monster out into the community by performing it in kitchens.

“As an artist, I’ve been creating work about the challenges facing new parents and the need for support, and had the idea of the kart, complete with potties and Tommee Tippee bottles, linked to that,” she said.

“I got some neighbours involved to help build the kart and as my pit crew, and was able to raise some money from it for charity. And I thought in view of its theme, Home Start was an ideal charity to support.

“My youngest Karla, aged five, has now joined her six-year-old brother Frank at school, which as a parent, marks the end of my pre-school years. And the kart was an extension of my school run, which goes along the same route.

“I’ve lived in the Wye Valley for just under two years and wanted to meet some neighbours, so we got together, borrowed a kart and designed it. And as there were no women racing last year, I thought it was time one of us took the plunge, but I wasn’t the only one, as four had a go this time.

“It was really good fun. My first run took five minutes, because the brakes locked, so as I got down in about two minutes on the second run I got the most improved time.”

Now Liz is hoping to pencil in some local dates for her Mummy Monster show, which she describes as “comic, physical and visual”.

“The show takes place in the kitchen, and I perform it in community centres, children’s crèches, village halls, even private homes,” she says.

“Mummy Monster is a tale of isolation and adoration and is for anybody who has spent long hours with small children, or who cares about anybody who does.

“It is about one woman’s journey from a seeming state of balance into a monstrous state where she is no longer fully in control. The show explores the times when you as a parent “lose it” and is an honest look at the pressures of parenting.

“It’s funny, but it throws up the importance of community and the need for groups like Home Start.”

Pam Lloyd, manager of the Monmouth-based charity, said: “We’re delighted that Liz thought of us after she raised this money and are very grateful for her help.”

To see more about Liz’s show, see www.ladystrongsbonfire.co.uk/shows/mummy-monster/