The Bearded Girl

A sideshow can be a magical place. For those who live and work there, it can be a safe haven. For Cleo, her role in the family-run exhibit is clear: as the 88th generation of proud, bearded women, she follows their legacy of sword-swallowing, and her overbearing mother, Lady Andre, wants Cleo to be an obedient daughter and stick with tradition. But outside the show tents of Paradise County is a big world, and when Cleo’s fresh ideas for their sword show aren’t embraced, and she clashes with her mother, she gets the itch to leave her talented fringe family to find love and perhaps a new normal that doesn’t include facial hair. A sideshow can be a magical place. For those who live and work there, it can be a safe haven. For Cleo, her role in the family-run exhibit is clear: as the 88th generation of proud, bearded women, she follows their legacy of sword-swallowing, and her overbearing mother, Lady Andre, wants Cleo to be an obedient daughter and stick with tradition. But outside the show tents of Paradise County is a big world, and when Cleo’s fresh ideas for their sword show aren’t embraced, and she clashes with her mother, she gets the itch to leave her talented fringe family to find love and perhaps a new normal that doesn’t include facial hair.