“I want to share my experiences to inspire further conversation. It’s honestly the most authentic and vulnerable thing I’ve ever written, and I’m kinda really proud of it.”
WHO: Yola Jean Lu
WHAT: “Help! My Vagina Is Trying to Kill Me! is a dark, comedic solo show that explores one woman’s journey of navigating STDs, miscarriages and pre-cervical cancer, all while learning to love her vagina and herself again.”
WHERE: theSpace @ Surgeons’ Hall – Stephenson Theatre (Venue 53)
WHEN: 20:05 (50 min)
MORE: Click Here!
Is this your first time to Edinburgh?
Yes! This will be my first time to Edinburgh and I can’t even begin to tell y’all how excited I am. I’ve seen the pictures and it looks like a dream! I mean, a real castle just casually hanging out there? (got tickets to visit it too!) But I’ve heard that the Fringe is an experience like no other! You have shows from all genres from all over the world there, and people from all over visiting to see the shows! I don’t think I’ve ever had an opportunity to perform for this diverse of crowds before and I’m interested in seeing how my material translate to different audiences.
What are the big things you’ve learned since 2023 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?
One of the biggest things I’ve learned in 2023 is about the importance of saying “no”. I have struggled with always saying yes to things and barely setting any boundaries for myself, which lead to constant burn out and brought up lots of suicidal ideation. I’m not saying I’m perfect with this yet – but I’ve found myself saying no to things more often now. Especially when the thing asked of me doesn’t excite me! Like, someone I didn’t know from the internet rudely asked me to take a look at her scripts and just sent them to me. Normally, I want to help, and I’ll always say yes, even if I can’t get to the stuff right away. But this time I was like, nah, and literally said “Sorry, I don’t have the bandwidth right now”. But honestly? If she was nicer, I probably would have. Such a small little win, but not joking, I used to CRY if I had to say no to something (in private, not in front of the person, I’m not a weirdo!) and it would make me depressed for the rest of the day. So, seriously, this is some major growth!
Tell us about your show.
My show is literally about the ways my vagina has tried killing me. It’s broken into three topics: herpes, miscarriages and HPV. I know they all sound bleak but as a stand up comedian of 13 years, I painstakingly have found ways to incorporate jokes into this show to provide levity to people watching. It’s taken me YEARS to get the courage to talk about some of these topics. I was so ashamed and felt like people would judge me if they knew these things about me. But I’m braver now, and think comedy (at least in America, where I’m from) is going through some growing pains. There is so much comedy out there now that tears down and makes fun of marginalized groups of people. Things like herpes is commonly made the punchline of jokes. I want to end the shame and stigma with this show. And I want to share my experiences to inspire further conversation. It’s honestly the most authentic and vulnerable thing I’ve ever written, and I’m kinda really proud of it. My hope is to take this show and bring it on tour to marginalized communities and colleges around the USA in 2025.
What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?
So, I live in Austin, TX and we don’t get the opportunities to see many of the shows at the Fringe! I’ve actually already bought a ton of tickets to see shows that excite me, and are from other Asian performers (I don’t know if you can tell by the way I type, but I’m also Asian). The one I have seen before, and am planning to see again is Anna Akana’s “It Gets Darker” – have you ever cried after a comedy show before? Because that was a first for me. It’s so vulnerable and honest and Anna is a wonderful performer. Other shows I have tickets for are Chris Grace’s “Sardines”, Ricky Sim’s “Coming Out to Dead People” and another Austin, TX local, Katie Folger’s “Getting in Bed with the Pizza Man”. Oh, and Baby Wants Candy, of course. I’ve only seen them once and they blew me away and I’ve been chasing that sort of high from a show ever since!
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