Author Archives: Dan Lentell

+3 Interview: Murder, She Didn’t Write: The Improvised Murder Mystery

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals, EdFestivals 2017, Plus 3 2017 - Features by

“We frequently outnumbered the audience but to be honest we were just happy to be performing.”

WHO: Lizzy Skrzypiec, Director/performer

WHAT: “A classic murder mystery is created on the spot in this ingenious and hilarious show from Bristol Improv Theatre’s resident company. Miss Crimson poisoned in the parlour? Mr Gold exploded by cannon in Sainsbury’s? You decide! But will you guess whodunnit? And for your Sunday night entertainment, don’t forget our additional late night shows!”

WHERE: Pleasance Courtyard (Venue 33) 

WHEN: Varies (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is Murder, She Didn’t Write‘s fifth time at the fringe and it’ll be my eighth/ nineth time as a performer. I started off with a small part-improv-part-sketch group putting on a free show that was on at about 1pm in a pub far beyond the Meadows. We frequently outnumbered the audience but to be honest we were just happy to be performing. This year we have moved to the Pleasance and I couldn’t be more excited.

Tell us about your show.

Murder, She Didn’t Write is an improvised murder mystery where the cast make up a bespoke play based on audience suggestions, but it doesn’t stop there, one member of the audience decides who they want to be the victim and murderer and then it’s up to the rest of the audience to guess whodunnit. We came up with the format about five/six years ago and have been tweaking it, changing it ever since to maximize our creative freedom and the audience’s enjoyment.

When I say we, I mean Degrees of Error – a group of improvisers based at the Bristol Improv Theatre. Many of us used to perform with Bristol University’s Improv Society and the group formed with university graduates who still wanted to perform improv. However, since then our group has grown and we now have members from more theatrical backgrounds with proper acting chops! It’s lead to a truly gorgeous group of talented improvisers I’m proud to be a part of.

I am the director of the show, which is an odd thing to imagine in a play without a script. But it’s my job to make sure we are all in the same page tonally, visually etc and to see how we can continue to make the show better. We tour during the year to various theatres and festivals and we are also developing completely new shows that we premier at the BIT.

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

We heartily recommend checking out some other improv shows like Showstoppers, Austentatious, And Now For Something Completely Improvised, Happily Never After, Scribble and This Is Soap. They are a hoard of varied and delightful shows by a hoard of incredibly talented improvisers.

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+3 Interview: Richard Carpenter is Close to You

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2017, Plus 3 2017 - Features by

“I’ve had more Edinburghs than boyfriends. In fact, Edinburgh is my boyfriend.”

WHO: Matthew Floyd Jones, Performer/Writer

WHAT: “Richard from The Carpenters used to be on top of the world looking down on creation, to the left of (and slightly behind) Karen. Now, he’s back at the piano once more in this razor-sharp tragicomedy that takes you on the ultimate ticket to ride. Cos solitaire really is the only game in town! Written and performed by Matthew Floyd Jones, the piano player from Frisky & Mannish.”

WHERE: Underbelly, George Square (Venue 300)

WHEN: 17:20 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

I’ve had more Edinburghs than boyfriends. In fact, Edinburgh is my boyfriend. In a Bill Sikes-Nancy way. Like, as long as Edinburgh needs me, I know where I must be, in spite of what you see, I’m sure that Edinburgh needs me. My biggest success at the Fringe was in 2011 when I sold out the purple cow with my dear friend Frisky, and we were on the cover of magazines everywhere. It was a golden era of musical comedy infotainment!

Tell us about your show.

I wrote Richard Carpenter is Close to You, I’m producing it, and I brought the company together by begging my favourite past collaborators to help me. Luckily I know a ton of brilliant people. The production has been on a preview tour since May, playing Brighton, Birmingham, Leeds, Oxford, Manchester, Buxton, Bristol and York, so it’s REALLY REALLY ready now…

It’s a comedy/theatre piece about the innermost thoughts of Richard Carpenter, who is now my hero but used to represent the worst fears I had about myself. If you saw Frisky & Mannish, you’ll know what I mean. I’m definitely a Richard, not a Karen. This show depicts the frustrations I’ve faced coming to terms with that fact, but also the joy of realising that that’s ok, and that the world needs Richards too.

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

See a sunrise from Arthur’s Seat, or see a sunset from the Castle – see something of Edinburgh while you’re here, because it’s such a beautiful city. Then see Kate If You Wanna Go Butcher.

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+3 Interview: Losers

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2017, Plus 3 2017 - Reviews by

“Edinburgh’s bloomin’ expensive. We’ve finally emptied our piggy banks and taken the plunge.”

WHO: Arthur Jones, Performer

WHAT: “Grab a voting handset, meet four dangerously desperate contestants and decide their formidable fates. It’s the most nail-biting TV game show of the decade and no one’s going down without a fight. Theatrical mischief-makers Tit4Twat bring their critically-acclaimed satire to Edinburgh for the first time. 16+ (stupidity and real violence guaranteed).”

WHERE: Underbelly, Cowgate (Venue 61) 

WHEN: 23:20 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

As a company – yes. We’ve been performing Losers all over the place for the last 3 years – but Edinburgh’s bloomin’ expensive. We’ve finally emptied our piggy banks and taken the plunge.

Tell us about your show.

We’re bringing Losers to Underbelly Cowgate: a rowdy, late-night and interactive satire about the depths reality TV contestants will go for a ‘big break’. Audience members are armed with electronic voting handsets, and introduced to four performers who’ll do anything (and we mean anything) to win the audience’s affection and avoid getting punished.

We, Tit4Twat Theatre, devised the show together in response to a couple of (now banned) reality shows that took torture and degradation of contestants so far that people very nearly got hurt. Google The Chair and The Chamber to see what we mean. The fact those formats were permitted to air in the first place and (indeed) people signed up to ‘star’ on them troubled us though – so we did a lot of research, and Losers is the result.

Tit4Twat is three Warwick University Theatre graduates (Arthur, Rachel and Sophie), who share a love for creating messy interactive performance. We formed the company soon after graduating, and have spent the last 3 years creating and touring Losers predominantly around London venues (Camden People’s Theatre, Rosemary Branch, Etcetera and Rag Factory) but also further afield (Warwick Arts Centre, Derby Theatre and now Underbelly).

Post-Edinburgh, we’re taking the show back to London – Rich Mix in Shoreditch – to feature in We Are Now Festival, which celebrates performance that utilises emerging and innovative technology. A Spring 2018 tour is then (excitingly) in the pipeline.

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

Barely Methodical Troupe’s Kin. We just re-watched it at Latitude this weekend and it’s SO GOOD. Circus with charm, attitude and a banana.

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+3 Interview: Rock of Ages: High School Edition

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2017, Plus 3 2017 - Features by

“The cast is full of talented, young, eager performers who are well-equipped to perform classic American songs favored worldwide.”

WHO: Peelee Clark, Director/Choreographer

WHAT: “It’s the end of the 1980s in Hollywood, and the party has been raging. Aqua Net, Lycra, lace and liquor flow freely at one of the Sunset Strips last venues, a place where sex machine Stacee Jaxx takes the stage and scantily clad groupies line up to turn their fantasies into reality. Amidst the madness aspiring rock star Drew longs to take the stage as the next big thing, but the fairy-tale is about to end when German developers sweep into town with plans to turn the fabled Strip into another capitalist strip mall.”

WHERE: SpaceTriplex (Venue 38) ​

WHEN: Varies (85 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

As part of the American High School Theatre Festival, this is my second time bringing our theatre company to the Fringe after getting our start at the 2013 Capital Fringe in Washington D.C. with an original piece called Urban Legends.

In 2015 we performed The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee to sold out audiences at Space Triplex (V 38).

Tell us about your show.

Coming off a very successful season which included School of Rock (regional premiere), American Idiot, Night of the Living Dead and Billy Elliot, which won the National Capital Area Cappies Award for Best Musical at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, we are ready to melt your face off with Rock of Ages.
Rock of Ages by Chris D’Arienzo and Ethan Popp is a highly demanding show, representing the perfect challenge for Beyond the Page.

Each individual who is a part of the production has the necessary talent and drive to pull off such a musical. This show caters to the strengths of our company as a whole and is sure to have the audience rocking in their seats. The cast is full of talented, young, eager performers who are well-equipped to perform classic American songs favored worldwide.

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

Without a doubt Trainspotting Live. This immersive, in-yer-face theatre company performs one of the most disgusting and offensive, passionate plays I’ve ever had the privilege to see. This year will be my third time seeing it and I cannot wait. Unfortunately it’s a bit rated R for my students.

However, if my students were asked this question, they would say Bruce. The two actors that manipulate the most adorable yellow block of foam have the best comic timing and we were in stitches when we saw them in 2015. Our entire cast and crew will be in the audience this time around.

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+3 Interview: Seven Crazy Bitches

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals, Plus 3 2017 - Features by

“I did that horrific ‘lying on the floor like you’re a dead body to hand out flyers’ thing. Won’t be doing that this year!”

WHO: Holly Morgan, Diva

WHAT: “Join the Diva on a budget as she guides you through the Seven Ages of Woman. Pit stops include seduction via Kate Bush, an interview with the woman who lived in Prince’s head, and finding out how many two pence pieces a man can insert up his foreskin. This is standing up cabaret on a budget as you’ve never seen it before. Because the Diva’s pretty sure she just invented it… ”

WHERE: Assembly Hall (Venue 35) ​

WHEN: 19:00 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is my first year with my own show! I was in Bat Boy! the Musical when I was a student and I did that horrific ‘lying on the floor like you’re a dead body to hand out flyers’ thing. Won’t be doing that this year!

Tell us about your show.

So I’ve written it and I’ve been very lucky to have some very talented people to draw on to help out with it; my boyfriend Tom is in it and gets roundly abused by me and has to sit in a cardboard box for an hour, my mate Lisa is a fabulous director and crazy bitch herself and Esh is best described as the show’s Guru! Roshan Conn is a wizard. Or she’s really organised, great at Q lab and always has my back…that or a wizard.

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

Cat Loud’s phenomenal one woman show, Wayward.

My beautiful venue-mate Lucy Farrett has brought her hilarious show, Ladyface to Assembly. She’s on just before us and she’s awesome.

A Hundred Different Words for Love is a beautiful hour of storytelling by James Rowland – a must see.

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+3 Interview: The Older Brothers’ Almanac

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2017, Plus 3 2017 - Features by

“Much of my actual childhood has disappeared and been replaced by events that can be told in 50min.”

WHO: Richard Thieriot, Writer, Producer and Actor

WHAT: “From NYC comes a darkly comic guide for brothers everywhere: how to teach, protect and permanently traumatise each other. All (almost) techniques applicable to Sisterhood. Free beer for siblings who come to the show together! Features classic techniques and time-honoured rituals such as The Headlock, The Dead Leg and Psychological Torture, plus Historical Accounts and Science! Guest appearances include Cain and Abel, The Wright Brothers, The Kennedys, Liam and Noel Gallagher, Warren Beatty and Shirley MacLaine, and Billy Baldwin. Have we said already? Free beer for siblings who come to the show together!”

WHERE: C venues – C (Venue 34)

WHEN: 17:30 (50 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is my first time bringing a show to the festival although I spent two rain-soaked days there last year and absolutely loved it!

Tell us about your show.

The Older Brothers’ Almanac began out of telling stories from my childhood. I grew up with three older brothers and we did a lot of crazy, funny, violent things. It absolutely shaped show I am. I started working it into smaller pieces years ago and when I saw the Fringe last summer I realized that it was the perfect place to bring it all together. I reached out to Zach Evenson first.

We went to The National Theater Conservatory together a decade ago and I don’t think there is another actor who feels more like family to me. Then I went to Wes Grantom to see if he’d direct, again, we’ve worked together a bunch and we’ve fallen into comfortable grooves in the rehearsal room. Since then we’ve been refining and shaping the piece (much of my actual childhood has disappeared and been replaced by events that can be told in 50min). We’re hoping to get a run in NYC at a late night venue when we return.

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

13 and not Pregnant and Obfuscation

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+3 Interview: The Gin Chronicles at Sea

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“People from everywhere can see us if they want to, and then get their foul-mouthed, lewd violence quota from another show.”

WHO: Robert Blackwood, Producer/Writer/Actor

WHAT: “It’s 1947. Jobling and Golightly set sail across the Atlantic for some respite. Their best-laid plans are scuppered, however, when a secret recipe for the world’s greatest gin is alleged to be on-board. Join The Misfits of London as they return for their third year at the Edinburgh Fringe with their third (brand-new) adventure following five-star and four-star reviews for the last two! A favourite of visitors and locals alike, we offer every adult a complimentary gin and Fentimans Pink Grapefruit Tonic and all non-drinkers a Fentimans soft drink.”

WHERE: artSpace@StMarks (Venue 125) ​

WHEN: 18:30 & 20:30 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

We are delighted to be returning for our 3rd at the Fringe this year, especially to be part of the 70th Birthday celebrations!

What’s the biggest thing to have happened to you since Festivals ’16?

This is probably a very unsexy answer, but having a new website done. We said to ourselves “We need this to work for us” and wanted to invest in it going forward. It has been one of the most important things for us to have better online presence, and Ken & James at Matrix Digital Media were unique from the beginning in the fact that they were the only guys who asked us straight up what WE wanted rather than telling us what they were going to do. We found there was a lot of “you probably won’t understand what we’re going on about” from companies, but Ken & James have always taken the time to make sure we know what’s happening. Great guys, superb professionals.

Tell us about your show.

This will be our 3rd year at Edinburgh, and we bring the third adventure in The Gin Chronicles series up. I am the writer, and what I am very clear about doing is trying to make each adventure stand alone, so that you don’t have to have seen the previous ones for it to make sense.

Interrupt the Routine is the producing company, and the 1940s fictional Acting Troupe who perform The Gin Chronicles are called The Misfits of London. We have 3 brand new misfits with us this year, which is very exciting, along with two of us who are old hands.

The Misfits of London were created by myself and co-founder Nick Cowell as a troupe of actors who could bring shows for people of all ages to enjoy. We would focus on delivering comedy with no ‘nasty surprises’. By that I mean no swearing, no overt lewdness and nothing gruesome. It means that people from everywhere can see us if they want to, and then get their foul-mouthed, lewd violence quota from another show. Also, performing in a beautiful Unitarian Church on Castle Terrace means that it would feel slightly strange if we were putting on Reservoir Dogs.

We will have a couple of previews in London before we come north, and afterwards we’re taking it to The Asylum Festival in Lincolnshire, and beyond that is to be decided (though we have a run in November that is taking shape with dates in London and Guildford, hopefully).

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

Last year we talked about Laughing Stock, who are wonderful and who are in Edinburgh again this year with their Brand New Show, but this year we’re going to recommend Austentatious – the improvised Jane Austen show – as it is a glorious example of how years of hard work and incredibly high standards have paid off for a group of very talented people. Go and see them perform. It’ll be worth every ha’penny and farthing you have.

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+3 Interview: All Night Long

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“All Night Long, is a combination of our favourite songs, old and new, geared towards getting our crowd’s evening off to a wild start.”

WHO: Tristan Weller, Business Manager

WHAT: “The Other Guys from the University of St Andrews return to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for the third time, with more energy and excitement than ever before. After a jam-packed year with shows around the country, they are thrilled to be returning to home turf to finish the year off in style. Presenting their new show, All Night Long, The Other Guys cannot wait to start this party in the early afternoon… With a diverse repertoire, from heart-wrenching ballads to bop-around bangers, there is something for everybody. Expect a royal welcome from Scotland’s reigning men!”

WHERE: theSpace @ Surgeons Hall (Venue 53)

WHEN: 16:50 (50 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

It certainly isn’t! I’ve lived in Edinburgh since I was 2, having moved from Australia, so the Edinburgh Fringe is something I’ve been a part of for ages. As a group, we brought our show, Well Sung, to the festival last year, but since then we have brought on five new members who are new to the Fringe experience!

Tell us about your show.

The Other Guys was formed in 2004 by a group of guys who wanted to bring the American tradition of collegiate a cappella to St Andrews, and since then we have gone from strength to strength. Highlights of the past 13 years of TOG include our Youtube hits Royal Romance, St Andrews Girls and It’s Raining Men, performing for VIPs such as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Stephen Fry, Hillary Clinton and JJ Abrams, as well as our tour to North America in January of last year. This year’s show, All Night Long, is a combination of our favourite songs, old and new, geared towards getting our crowd’s evening off to a wild start.

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

Be sure to check out our St Andrews friends, The Accidentals, and their show Dangerous Women.

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+3 Interview: The Cat Man Curse

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“The whole thing has a very collaborative, home-made kind of feel.”

WHO: Sam, Writer/Performer

WHAT: “The Cat Man Curse is a whirlwind comedy by ex-Footlights Jordan, Sam and Guy. Using sketch, clown and physical theatre, Pelican balance a cartoonish narrative with playfulness and improvisation to tell the story of a bizarre mystery. When TV actor Charles Heron (famous for playing hotshot lawyer Harvey Hardtruth) is struck by an old Hollywood curse, he needs legal advice from a real-life solicitor, Mark Swift. Thrown into a kaleidoscopic 1970s noir investigation, the unlikely pair must come together to solve a mystery that’s wildly funny.”

WHERE: Bedlam Theatre (Venue 49) ​

WHEN: 20:00 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

We’ve each done shows at the festival before (ranging from sketch shows to the single most terrible performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Edinburgh history staring Sam aged 15) but this year’ll be the first time that we’ve come up as a company made up of the three of us, so it very much feels like a new adventure.

Tell us about your show.

The Cat Man Curse is basically a high-energy surreal comedy show. It’s a 1970s noir narrative that tells the story of Charles Heron, a TV actor famous for playing the hot-shot lawyer Harvey Hardtruth in a popular law show. Everything’s going great for Heron until he’s struck by an ancient Hollywood Curse and finds his life in grave danger. Think fast-paced, madcap and surreal.

The three of us write and perform the show and the whole thing is brought together by our amazing director Lucy who, as well as directing, choreographs it all. We also write our own soundtrack and make all our own props and costumes, so hopefully the whole thing has a very collaborative, home-made kind of feel.

We all met at university and started making shows together whilst we were there. Each of us came to Pelican (our company) from quite different performance backgrounds, ranging from film to music to theatre. It’s been really exciting bringing those different experiences together and seeing what kind of thing we make as a group. As a result we think that The Cat Man Curse is a real mix: part physical comedy, part storytelling, part dance show.

We’ve been really lucky to get the chance to develop the show over a long period of time. We did a work in progress version of it at VAULT Festival in London back in January and have developed it at festivals in Paris and Brighton through the year. We’ve also got another preview coming up at The Bill Murray pub in London on July 26th before we head up to Edinburgh where we’ll be performing the first full version of the show.

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

There is so much!

We think Juan Vesuvius: I am Your Deejay is great, especially if you’re into your Venezuelan calypso comedy.

We also loved Peter and Bambi Heaven last year and we’re very excited to catch them again.

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+3 Interview: Confessions of a Personal Trainer

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“It all started once I began to write down the stories of my interactions with my clients.”

WHO: Katie Kopajtic, Your Role in the Production: Writer, Actor, Producer

WHAT: “From New York City, Katie Kopajtic makes her international debut. She’s always had a love/hate relationship with personal training thanks to the entitled, bratty, bitchy, f*cking insane, totally helpless, utterly incapable clients who have stolen her heart. This show is a behind the scenes look at the luxury fitness world and the unconventional relationships that blossom within it.”

WHERE: Greenside @ Infirmary Street (Venue 236)

WHEN: 15:00 (45 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

It is my first time! Now that we are sub-20 days away, I have begun to practice diaphragmatic breathing.

Tell us about your show.

Confessions of a Personal Trainer is a show written about my survival job at a luxury fitness center in New York City – Equinox. It has one producer, one performer, and one writer (me!) Once I cobbled together a script I enlisted the help of my friend and comedy wizard Amanda Rothman to come on as director and help shape it for the international stage.

It all started once I began to write down the stories of my interactions with my clients. After workshopping it around New York City it premiered at The Tank’s Pride Fest last July. I cannot yet reveal where it will go post-Fringe, as there may be legal issues with my workplace. I am still employed under Equinox, and I am admittedly playing with fire by not censoring the company’s name.

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

SHOW UP by Peter Michael Marino. I saw it. It is incredible how he improvises a different show every night based on what the audience gives him.

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