Author Archives: Dan Lentell

+3 Interview: James Hancox: Sports for the Unsporty

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2018, Plus 3 2018 – Features by

“I bought a window box. It’s probably the most adult thing I’ve done.”

WHO: James Hancox, Performer

WHAT: “Do you have the heart of an athlete, but the skills of a toddler? Then this is the show for you! James Hancox is rubbish at sports. As a response he’s invented his own, and plans to unveil them to the world. Remember, if you can’t beat them, just make up a different game and beat them at that instead. Star of 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown and the award-winning Abandoman. ‘Lightning quick wit… has us all laughing uproariously’ ***** (GutterCulture.com). Nominated: Best Comedy Award, Fringe World Perth 2018.”

WHERE: Assembly George Square Theatre – The Bubble (Venue 8) 

WHEN: 16:00 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

I’ve been to the Fringe four times before with Abandoman, but this is my first time solo!

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

I bought a window box. It’s probably the most adult thing I’ve done. I spent a weekend researching which plants grow in shady areas. Oh, and I was nominated for a comedy award (Perth Fringe World).

Tell us about your show.

My show is called Sports For The Unsporty. I’ve always been awful at sporting things, so this year I’ve decided to make up my own sports and teach them to Edinburgh. The sportmaking formula is quite simple as I see it: take an action; repeat that action for 90 minutes; get really good at it; become the face of crisps like Gary Lineker. The show is produced by Sharon Burgess Productions. I took it to Perth at the start of 2018, where it received 5 star reviews and a Comedy Award nomination.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

JOEY PAGE, JOSH GLANC and KATIE PRITCHARD are all doing gloriously silly stuff at the moment. DAN ATTFIELD’s show last year was a funny blend of Google-based nerdery and musical comedy, so I’m looking forward to seeing this year’s show. If you like surreal games, check out ZAZUTINANY. Or for the perfect Fringe experience, go see the 6-ft bearded bombshell GINGZILLA in The Bubble (the same venue as me!)

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+3 Interview: Dysney Disfunction

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“The show’s a heart-stopper. You’re going to be swept up in the magic of it all, but the rug is also going to be pulled from underneath you.”

WHO: Michelle Sewell, Writer/performer

WHAT: “In Brexit Britain happily ever after (and UK residency) is just a marriage visa away. But Australian Alice’s visa expires today and she’s only got Primark flats for glass slippers, an Oyster card for a pumpkin coach and a prince who won’t twerk. Love, Alice thinks, is a fairy tale. Visa-less and forced to return to a country she doesn’t call home anymore, she waits at the tube for Prince Charming to rescue her. Alice quickly learns love changes people and childhood stories have no place in the adult world. Created by Malcolm Bradbury Award winner Michelle Sewell.”

WHERE: Assembly Rooms – Front Room (Venue 20) 

WHEN: 15:40 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

It’s the first time I’m bringing a show that I’ve written and performed in. Last year I came up on a StartEast mentorship programme working with British Showcase productions Rhum & Clay’s Testosterone, and had worked on Curious Directive’s Frogman.

Although the first time I ever performed a show at the Edinburgh Fringe was when I was eighteen and it was my first year in drama school in Sydney. I was chosen to be part of this show where I only had like two lines. Now I have fifty minutes to myself. I guess I have a lot more to say now. Haha!

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

Finding out that I can’t renew my visa at the end of the year. That was a shock (to say the least…). It gave me the impetus to write this show and it has actually made me appreciate my life in the UK a whole lot more. It’s also made me consider that tear between your home home – being Australia for me- and my home – being Norwich in England. I’ve also been thinking about Tim tams a lot more than I probably should be.

Tell us about your show.

The show’s a heart-stopper. You’re going to be swept up in the magic of it all, but the rug is also going to be pulled from underneath you. The director, David Gilbert, has done an awesome job in building the show into a really enjoyable theatrical piece of drama.

I wrote the piece which started as a three minute performance with SOHO and The Barbican’s Stage at the Walthamstow Garden Party. This then became a five minute journey with Cambridge Junction, Vaults Festival and the Lyric Hammersmith. Now it’s a 50 minute Beast of a play. We’ve previewed at Theatre 503, Cambridge Junction and Norwich Arts Centre. This has been such an incredible experience being able to take the show across the UK.

We’re hoping to transfer it to Adelaide Fringe next year then West End (a girl can dream, yeah?).

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

Oh goodness, there’s so so many kick-ass shows this year. I would definitely say Weird and Dangerous Giant Animals- two one-woman shows that deal with disabilities, which I think are just going to be beautiful and stand out this Fringe. There’s some really great shows from our Norwich friends, Laughing Mirror, who are on at The Space- definitely go check them out! And F*ck you Pay Me at Assembly.

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+3 Interview: Rory O’Keeffe: The 37th Question

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“I got a job writing interactive story apps, which has inspired the style of this year’s show.”

WHO: Rory O’Keeffe, Writer/Performer

WHAT: “Stuart and Zoe meet for their first date and do ‘The 36 Questions’, a psychological experiment designed to make strangers fall in love. It works. Now, after four years as a couple, is it time for the next question? Thirty Six Questions. One couple. One interactive Choose Your Own Adventure-style story. Award-winning comedian Rory O’Keeffe makes his first foray into the pretentious comedy/theatre world of storytelling (or Rorytelling*).‘Thoughtful and self-aware’ **** (BroadwayBaby.com). ‘Comedy for a post-recession graduate generation’ **** (Fest). ‘Downright clever show’ **** (Edinburgh49.org). *He promises not to make this pun in the show.”

WHERE: Banshee Labyrinth – Cinema Room (Venue 156) 

WHEN: 13:20 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is actually my 10th time in some form or another. I have been re-reading last year’s Edinburgh diary to get myself excited. Here is a sample entry (background info: my girlfriend is called Charlotte).

“Walked home disconsolate, bought parmesan, rang Charlotte, basically just complained at her which is unfair.”

So needless to say I am ABSOLUTELY. PUMPED. (for the parmesan).

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

I got a job writing interactive story apps, which has inspired the style of this year’s show. The company make The X Factor Life and Love Island: The Game. They’re Choose Your Own Adventure style stories so you decide what happens and you choose your appearance and your name. Most people choose their own name but I like to mix things up and try to win Love Island as ‘Boris Johnson’ or ‘Stewart Lee’.

Tell us about your show.

‘The 37th Question’ is a comic storytelling show about a couple (Stuart and Zoe) who met doing ‘The 36 Questions’, a psychological experiment designed to make strangers become intimate. It’s about what happens 4 years later when they approach the ‘37th Question’. It’s about choices, jealousy, miscommunication, and has a lot of laughs if you are that way inclined. It’s also slightly interactive as the audience can choose which way the narrative goes at certain points, including choosing between a happy and sad ending.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

Beard, Lazy Susan, The Pin if you’re into your sketch comedy. Matt Winning for a funny and insightful look at Climate Change. Kieran Hodgson for what sounds like a good Ted Heath impression (I will be Youtube-ing in advance to cross-reference). You should also check out the best novelist at the Fringe, Christopher Bliss. He writes two to three novels a day, which I think is really impressive actually.

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+3 Interview: Casanova Dreaming

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“The story is autobiographical and it does what it says on the tin. I have been telling these anecdotes in the pub for years.”

WHO: Martin Foreman, Writer / Director

WHAT: “The greatest master is passion, who makes slaves of us all… Asleep in bed with his first true love, 19-year-old Giacomo Casanova is visited by an old man who shows him his future – but is what he sees a promise or a warning? In this one-act drama, award-winning playwright Martin Foreman casts a sympathetic eye on the famous libertine and the women in his life. Following previous Fringe successes (Now We Are Pope, Tadzio Speaks), Casanova Dreaming continues Foreman’s exploration of love, loss and death focused on the city of Venice.”

WHERE: theSpace @ Niddry St – Upper Theatre (Round) (Venue 139) 

WHEN: 14:15 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

No. We’re Edinburgh-based and this is our third year at the Fringe. We started off with three one-man plays in 2014, took a year off in 2015, came back with J B Priestley’s The Rose and Crown in 2016. This year we have two very different productions – a one-act intense drama, Casanova Dreaming and a full-length farce, Volpone. Casanova, which explores the life of the famous libertine and the women and men who knew him, is getting its premiere at the Fringe. Volpone was at the Fringe for a week last year. The run was so successful we decided to bring it back for the full three weeks in 2018.

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

Winning the 2018 Pitlochry Festival Theatre Short Play Award. That and finding two great casts for this year’s Fringe.

Tell us about your show.

I’m the jack-of-all-trades producing, directing and writing both shows (with a little help from Ben Jonson for the original version of Volpone). We came together in the usual way – some of us have worked together both as part of Arbery Productions and in other Edinburgh based groups such as EGTG and Edinburgh People’s Theatre. Then we auditioned and found some fantastic actors, including the lead actors in Casanova Dreaming (Patrick Bergamo and Creighton King), both of whom moved to Edinburgh for rehearsals and the run.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

Difficult to say because I haven’t seen anything, but based on previous Fringes, I’d recommend EGTG’s Skirt and Much Ado About Nothing, and Arkle’s You Remind Me of You – but they’re on at the same time as Volpone so go see them another night… I don’t know any of the groups on in the afternoon, but I’ll be checking out The Devil You Know from Nottingham New Theatre, Hamlet – Horatio’s Tale from Guy Masterson and (late night) The Maids from Sudden Impulse Theatre.

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+3 Interview: How to Be Amazingly Happy!

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“I’m the Director of the Lawrence Batley Theatre in Huddersfield and so I usually come to choose show’s to bring back to the venue. This year I’ll be hoping people choose me!”

WHO: Victoria Firth, Writer and performer

WHAT: “How do you find a new ‘once upon a time’ after the ‘happy ever after’ never turned up? Victoria is on a quest to discover how you make a new life when you can’t have the one you imagined. In this big-hearted, big-thinking show of storytelling and physical comedy our heroine’s mid-life search for joy, identity and belonging features public displays of playfulness, private truths and sheer bloody mindedness. Join Victoria as she asks – what do you do with the rest of your life when you don’t have kids?”

WHERE: Pleasance Courtyard – Pleasance Below (Venue 33) 

WHEN: 11:35 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is my first visit to the Edinburgh Fringe as a performer, well apart from over 20 years ago when I was in a youth theatre production of ‘The Hired Man’. I do come to Edinburgh most years as a programmer – I’m the Director of the Lawrence Batley Theatre in Huddersfield and so I usually come to choose show’s to bring back to the venue. This year I’ll be hoping people choose me!

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

This year I decided to make theatre again and to go both feet in. I’ve been shadowing the Artistic Director of the Royal Exchange in Manchester, Sarah Frankom, learning to be a clown with Jamie Wood, trying out stand-up comedy with Logan Murray and making this show.

Tell us about your show.

I wrote and produced the show and I’ll be performing it. However it takes a lot of help to make a one-woman show and I’ve been delighted to have the support of Deborah Newbold, who won five star reviews with her show ‘Lost in Blue’ in 2016 and I’ve also had help from Ellie Harrison who has being producing a long running series of artworks on the theme of grief. They’ve both been enormously helpful in helping me explore different performance forms and the best ways to communicate with audiences.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

It depends on what interested them about my show. If you want to explore ideas about the role of parenting, or not, then I’d recommend No Kids by Ad Infinitum or for more thought-provoking stuff on women’s empowerment and their bodies – Vessel by Laura Wyatt O’Keeffe. For a look at how medical issues have an impact or your life and perceptions then Pricks by Jade Byrne is a lovely show. For more queer experience go to see Gypsy Queen by Hope Theatre Company and for more fun and playfulness Love letters from Blackpool by Ruth E Cockburn is a joy.

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+3 Interview: Ada Campe and the Psychic Duck

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“There’s a mystery, a dance, a bit of magic and lots of jolly nonsense.”

WHO: Naomi Paxton, Writer and performer

WHAT: “Variety! Comedy! A psychic duck! Join 2018 NATYS winner, Ada Campe, for a show about wonderful women, strange encounters and a fairground mystery that occurred on the Welsh coast many moons ago… ‘Extravagantly mischievous persona… brilliantly crowd-pleasing act’ (Chortle.co.uk). ‘Resembles an unhinged super-villain’ (Diva). ‘Sorcery wrapped in the kind of storytelling that would make Scheherezade jealous’ (Kate Copstick).”

WHERE: The Stand’s New Town Theatre – Studio (Venue 7) 

WHEN: 14:50 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

No, I first performed at Edinburgh when I was a student at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) in Glasgow in 2001. Since then I’ve been back as both an actor and as a magician’s assistant in various shows… but performing as Ada Campe is definitely the most fun I’ve had at the fringe so far!

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

Ada Campe came Top of the Bill at the 2018 New Act of the Year Show (NATYS) – the third woman to have done that ever! She also won the 2018 Old Comedian of the Year competition, held by the Museum of Comedy. It’s never too late to be discovered!

Tell us about your show.

The show is about Ada’s experiences of working at a funfair when she was younger – and how the women she met have influenced her career. There’s a mystery, a dance, a bit of magic and lots of jolly nonsense. It’s variety, comedy, magic, cabaret, and good fun!

I wrote the show and have produced it too – there have been previews in London and I’m now raring to release Ada Campe and her Psychic Duck on Edinburgh. I’d love to take her on tour afterwards…

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

Mat Ricardo vs the World, The Creative Martyrs, Charmian Hughes’ new show Bra Trek, Singalong Sitcom Quiz, Magic Faraway Cabaret, That Daring Australian Girl.

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+3 Interview: My Kind of Michael

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“The show is about my childhood hero Michael Barrymore, his life and how it influenced me.”

WHO: Nick Cassenbaum, Performer and Co-creator

WHAT: “Ever since he was a kid, Nick has loved Michael Barrymore. In this heartfelt and playful tribute, Nick invites you to examine the turbulent relationship between showman and spectator. Using his unique and praised style of storytelling, and Barrymore’s iconic shticks, Nick intertwines his own personal stories with tales of Barrymore’s rise to fame and ultimate downfall. With live music and gags-a-plenty, it promises to be ‘Alwight’! Nick returns to Summerhall after his 2016 hit Bubble Schmeisis. Created with Danny Braverman (Wot? No Fish!!).”

WHERE: Summerhall – Red Lecture Theatre (Venue 26) 

WHEN: 19:30 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is my second time bringing a show. I came in 2016 with Bubble Schmeisis, which was on at Summerhall and had a ball. The show has been touring since, this year Malta and Detroit! before that I used to work as a technician at the Pleasance, that is what got me excited about the fringe. Cramming in as many shows as possible. And then there was the year i bought my first street show to the Royal Mile. I did a trick with a cucumber….we made about a tenner.

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

Oh it has to be taking Bubble Schmeisis to Detroit. The University of Michigan brought us over. The show is all about going to steam baths in East London. The venue they got us was an actual steam baths call the schvitz. It was fantastic, it is a real historic place in Detroit and to be there was a real treat. Everything about it was amazing, the tiles, the history, the people and most importantly the steam.

Tell us about your show.

The show is about my childhood hero Michael Barrymore, his life and how it influenced me. But more than that it is about the relationship between entertainer and audience, and how disposable entertainers are to us. It borrows a lot from Barrymore’s style and features live music, storytelling and audience interaction. I wrote the show with Danny Braverman, we worked together on Bubble Schmeisis after I saw his show Wot! no FIsh? and thought…I have to work with this person. S

Sian Baxter is producing who I have been working with for a couple of years now. The show was previewed at NOW18 at the Yard Theatre and will be headed to the Batterseas Arts Centre in the Spring…where else…who knows?!?!

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

I am super excited to see Thatcher Queen of Soho back. It is a fantastic show, hilarious with plenty of audience interaction. If people like my show…I think they will love this one.
My mates Sh!t Theatre who are bringing back DollyWould, a great show.
The really funny Top Joe. He’s great and wears a high vis so you can’t miss him!

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+3 Interview: The Red Shoes

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“We have a very short rehearsal period to create a huge, glamorous ensemble show which is really exciting and a completely unique experience.”

WHO: Josh Myers, Performed

WHAT: “A reimagining of Hans Christian Andersen’s tale, the ‘superbly talented’ (List) Young Pleasance bring the glitz, glamour, and seedy underworld of interwar Berlin to life with characteristic high production values, ‘sheer professionalism and talent’ (EdinburghGuide.com). Follow Lotta as her Red Shoes lead her on a rags-to-riches journey from the steps of the orphanage through the hedonism of its dance halls, and finally as an actress on the silver screen as Germany teeters on the brink of disaster. Vivaciously light with disturbingly dark undertones. ‘Always one of the hottest tickets at the Fringe’ (The730Review.co.uk).”

WHERE: Pleasance Courtyard – Pleasance Beyond (Venue 33) 

WHEN: 15:30 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is my second time performing at the Fringe (I also performed with Young Pleasance last year) but I first visited with my family when I was 8 and have done a number of times since. And while just going to see shows at the festival is exciting and hectic, performing is even more so!

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

Turning 18 and supposedly becoming an ‘adult’. It’s weird because I definitely don’t feel like one.

Tell us about your show.

It’s based on Hans Christian Anderson’s ‘The Red Shoes’. Our version is set in early 20th-Century Berlin, so as we see the protagonist grow up we move from the seedy yet glamorous nightclubs of the Weimar period to the Nazi’s rise to power. We have a very short rehearsal period to create a huge, glamorous ensemble show which is really exciting and a completely unique experience. Working with new people has been lovely and has meant I’ve been learning a lot in such a short amount of time, as well.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

They should, of course, come and see our show again and recommend it to everyone they know! But Incognito and Spies Like Us, two companies of Young Pleasance alumni, promise to put on brilliant shows (‘Tobacco Road’ and ‘Woyzeck’ respectively). I also love seeing comedy at the festival and last year Adam Riches’ show made me howl with laughter.

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+3 Interview: Voldemort and the Teenage Hogwarts Musical Parody

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“I’m just as excited as ever to be in Scotland.”

WHO: Chris Grace, Producer

WHAT: “Before Voldemort was He Who Must Not Be Named, he was just Tom Riddle, another moody teen at Hogwarts. Join Tom and his best friend/snake Nagini on a hilarious musical adventure packed with magic, hormones, and more than a few murders. From two co-creators of Thrones! The Musical and fresh from sold-out performances at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in Los Angeles comes a Harry Potter musical parody that is sure to leave you spellbound!”

WHERE: Assembly George Square Studios – One (Venue 17) 

WHEN: 17:00 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

No, it’s my seventh in a row in fact, and I’m just as excited as ever to be in Scotland.

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

I got married! Well, I was already married, but my husband and I had a public ceremony and reception, so we threw a big party and everyone watched us so lovely things to each other. It was very nice, sorry we didn’t see you there!

Tell us about your show.

Our show is a loving prequel to Harry Potter following Tom Riddle as a teen before he became He Who Must Not Be Named. It was written by Zach Reino, Fiona Landers, Richie Root, and Scott Passarella, all great friends of mine, and I saw their show a year ago and loved it and thought “I want to bring this to Edinburgh”. It did show in LA before and it sold out, and after Fringe we’ll be doing it again in the US and also licensing the show out if UK companies want to put it on.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

They should see as much circus and magic as possible, and then see Baby Wants Candy (which I’m also performing in) and then go see a random show that you have no idea about! And then go see Jordan Brookes, who I saw for the first time last year and loved!

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+3 Interview: Bilal Zafar – Lovebots

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“A hairless cat wondered into my room through my window … it took me 30 seconds to even figure out what it was.”

WHO: Bilal Zafar, Writer / performer

WHAT: “Best Newcomer nominee 2016 and Hackney Empire (NATYS) winner is back with a brand-new show! Social media has been taken over by bots spreading hate, fear and influencing how we vote. In Lovebots, Bilal has made his own bots to fight back, except these bots only want to spread love and compassion. As seen/heard on BBC Three, Channel 4, MTV, BBC iPlayer, and BBC Radio 4. ‘Witty and absorbing… highly entertaining’ (Times). ‘Delivers big laughs’ (Guardian). ‘A natural storyteller with a very likeable stage presence’ ***** (Shortcom.co.uk).”

WHERE: Just the Tonic at The Mash House – Just the Cask Room (Venue 288) 

WHEN: 15:45 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

Nope, this is my third show in a row. The first one was nominated for an award, the second wasn’t but I still like it. This is the third which will be completing a little trilogy of shows that are predominantly about social media and how it affects our lives. I’m very excited to be back.

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’17?

I got to record my latest show for BBC Radio 4. I loved getting an opportunity like that and it all went a lot better than I expected. Apart from that, a hairless cat wondered into my room through my window and it took me 30 seconds to even figure out what it was.

Tell us about your show.

I always write my stuff, although this year I have a director for the first time and it’s my friend Josie Long. The show is all about how we have been manipulated in recent Western elections with twitter bots and all sorts of other scary stuff. In my show, I’ll be trying to fix the world by creating my own bots that only spread love and compassion. I have been previewing it around the UK and will hopefully be taking it around the country as a finished tour show.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

Trevor Lock. He does the same show every year but it’s heavily improvised. One of the funniest things I’ve ever seen and it’s free!

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