Royal Academic of Dramatic Art (RADA) graduate Rachel Cairns and her solo show ‘Hypothetical Baby’ returns for another Toronto engagement to Factory Theatre from February 23 – March 8, 2025.

Cairns considers her RADA training as an incredible foundation for her work as a performer. That being said, she also believes that training as an artist never stops because it is a lifelong thing. Over the years, she has found that some of the most valuable lessons have come from working in the performing arts industry and navigating life itself.

I’m sure her one-woman show ‘Hypothetical Baby’ has provided ample opportunity to learn more about the industry and how it might respond to a controversial and sensitive topic today, given the repeal in the United States of Roe v. Wade.

In a recent interview with Cairns, I sent her questions to answer via email and inquired about the significance of the solo show’s title and what it represents. Yes, as a practicing Catholic, I have my thoughts on this sensitive issue, but I also firmly believe it is vital to hear from women regarding this topic. This profile is not an opportunity to use this platform to hypothesize my views.

It is meant for me and for others to listen first.

Courtney Ch’ng Lancaster will direct the show once again at Factory. Rachel says the production this time is essentially the same. Nightwood Theatre, one of the producers, was very specific about not changing anything for the upcoming production.

Cairns says ‘Hypothetical Baby’ is a play about the decision to become a parent—or not—so the title directly speaks to that theme. She actually lifted it from a line in the show because the phrase felt like it encapsulated a lot. There's also a bit of a wink in it. She knows a show about abortion might come with certain connotations, but she hopes the title hints that it's not all going to be painfully earnest.

Further specifics about ‘Baby’: “An unintended pregnancy, followed by an unhelpful doctor’s appointment, leads to a Christmas Eve abortion and one woman’s reckoning with the practical and existential considerations in deciding to become a parent…or not. The show also mixes date and drama to publicly talk about abortion the way we do privately – with neurotic vulnerability, unflinching honesty and frank irreverence. (taken from Rachel Cairns’ website)

When the production originally played in Toronto, I sent a female reviewer to review Hypothetical Baby, and she wrote that the show is “as intimate and emotional as it is politically relevant.”

I’m sending a male to review the show this time since I’m unavailable for media night as I will attend another opening.

I asked Rachel her thoughts about sending a male to cover the show.

While she understands the sensitivity around gender, especially with abortion, particularly as we’re seeing in the US where it’s mainly men making decisions about women’s and pregnant bodies, Cairns believes more men are also needed to join the conversation and, quite frankly, to care about this issue and how it impacts them and the people they love.

For Cairns: “abortion is not just a women’s issue since not all women can get pregnant and not all pregnant people are women.”

She elaborates pretty frankly:

“My abortion was also my partner’s abortion—he wasn’t ready to become a parent either. In the show, you'll see that his hesitancy and inability to talk openly about abortion—shaped by societal conditioning that discourages men from expressing their feelings—made the experience harder for us as a couple. This silence, especially from men who may feel it’s not their place to discuss abortion, only puts more pressure and work on people who can get pregnant and perpetuates the stigma.”

Cairns emphasizes that normalizing and destigmatizing abortion means recognizing it as a human experience that affects us all. Decisions around pregnancy are fundamentally about human rights, self-determination, and bodily autonomy. When we approach it that way, as her play does, we see reproductive choice as one of the most fundamental freedoms—like choosing what we believe, the work we do, and who we love.

Any thoughts for Catholics and Christians about seeing the show?

Rachel hopes they can see it as an invitation to think about compassion, empathy, and the profound responsibility of creating a world where people can parent if they choose to—and not because it's expected or imposed on them—as well as what it means to live in a society where everyone has what they need to survive and thrive. Parenting isn't just a matter of individual will; it's shaped by economic realities, gender expectations, social policies, and access to healthcare and childcare—not to mention the need for a planet we can trust will remain a safe and sustainable place for those children throughout their lives.

At its core, Hypothetical Baby’ is a story about love between partners, between parents and children, between a person and their own future, and also our collective responsibility to each other as a society.
Rachel thinks the message of love, dignity, and care resonates deeply with people regardless of their religious or cultural background.

As we began to close our email conversation, I asked: “If an audience member can come away from ‘Hypothetical Baby’ with one message, what would that be?”

Cairns hopes audiences leave the play reflecting on what it means to live in a society where everyone has what they need to survive because that’s the only way people can make genuine choices, especially when it comes to the profound decision to bring new life into the world.

She adds:

“More and more people are choosing not to have children—and yes, that’s partly because not everyone wants to be a parent. Right now, we’re facing crises in nearly every social sector of our lives: housing, healthcare, education, wages, climate, you name it. While I believe that pregnancy must always be a personal decision, the work of creating and sustaining life goes beyond individual choices. It’s a collective endeavour that connects and holds us together. The only way parenting becomes more possible is if we choose to invest in the work of caring for life, to make it worth living. I hope audiences leave ‘Hypothetical Baby’ reflecting on the essential and invaluable work of raising children and nurturing life—and how it's worth supporting not just for parents but for everyone.

What’s next for Rachel Cairns once ‘Hypothetical Baby’ is finished?

She’s currently working on adapting the play and podcast into a narrative non-fiction memoir with ECW Press. She’s also returning to another favourite topic of hers that might be even more taboo than abortion: money. After being "the abortion girl" for a few years, I've found that people are often way more willing to share their opinions and experiences about abortion with me than they are talking openly and transparently about money.

We’re to stay tuned.

‘Hypothetical Baby’ produced by Nightwood Theatre in association with The Howland Company, runs at Toronto’s Factory Theatre from February 23 to March 8, 2025. For tickets, visit https://www.factorytheatre.ca/shows/hypothetical-baby/#about

To learn more about Rachel Cairns, the artist: https://www.rachelcairns.ca/#contact