Tag Archives: EdFringe

EdFringe Talk: Made in India/Britain

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2022 by

“I had an opportunity to go over things what I wanted to do in my future; It was a period that really shaped my current work.”

WHO: Rinkoo Barpaga

WHAT: “Since leaving home in Birmingham, Rinkoo Barpaga has been determined to find somewhere to settle. Along the way he’s encountered racism, discrimination and has begun asking himself: ‘Where do I belong?’ Join him as he delves deep into past experiences in order to discover his true self and a place he can finally call home. Performed by Rinkoo in British Sign Language, with live voiceover provided by an actor. Supported by the Pleasance’s Generate Fund. Directed by Tyrone Huggins.”

WHERE: Pleasance Courtyard – Pleasance Two (Venue 33) 

WHEN: 13:40 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

It’s my first time going to a fringe and performing in one – I feel like I’m going to the World Cup! You want to do your best and I want to showcase the best of what I can do. It’ll be a very interesting experience for me because I have had to use my physical performance skills a lot growing up in the deaf community. I’ve relied a lot on body movements and facial expressions. Having the chance to perform using aspects of languages has been very informative for me.

In terms of what makes a great festival, this feels like a bit of a trick question.

For me accessibility, is a huge thing. BSL isn’t a foreign language and I think it’s a shame it gets treated like one by not getting taught in mainstream schools.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

I think the biggest thing I’ve learnt was in lockdown, as it gave me the chance to reflect. It gave me a lot of time to look back on my life, on everything that I’ve done, what my thoughts were about the past and what they are now. I had an opportunity to go over things what I wanted to do in my future; It was a period that really shaped my current work.

Tell us about your show.

The show is about finding a home that I still haven’t found. I have an amazing team that helped me write this performance all based on my life story.

Daniel Bailey is the dramaturge and original director of the show. Tyrone Higgins is the current director of the show. Mathias Andre is assistant director and my voice over. I can’t forget Deaf Explorer who I became involved with in 2016 and are producing the shows.

It started coming together when I was at Birmingham Rep doing a one year foundry course. You learn to develop your work about theatre making everything to do with performance. I performed an iteration of the show at The Rep, The Midlands Art Theatre, Camden People Theatre and Crystal Palace Festival.

I have no clue what will happen afterwards but I would really like to perform around the UK. Here, compared to abroad, we have a lot of great deaf actors. We’ve got a lot of good stuff and I would like to be able to perform abroad and show deaf people in other countries what they can do.

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

Block’d Off because like my show it’s based on real stories and real lives, exposing what it’s like to be working-class in London today. Rapsody is also one to look out for because it’s a young Birmingham based company that’s bringing rap, trap and drill music to the main stage. Looking at the programme at Summerhall and Pleasance My Voice Was Heard But It Was Ignored and Rajesh and Naresh have also caught my eye.

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EdFringe Talk: How to Build a Wax Figure

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2022 by

“Whenever we tell people we’re going up, they respond by either literally squealing with excitement, an involuntary shudder, telling us to pack a bag full of vitamins, or unveiling a parchment scroll of their favourite street corners.”

WHO: Isabella Waldron: Playwright

WHAT: “Girl meets anatomical wax sculptor. Anatomical wax sculptor meets girl. They fall in love. Or something like that. Bea’s older neighbour was her first love, her first cigarette, her first prosthetic eye. When Bea is invited to the Wellcome Collection to speak about her expertise making glass eyes, she finds herself unable to untie Margot from all that she does. As she tries to unpack her mentor’s effect on her work, Bea must dissect for herself what love really looks like.”

WHERE: Assembly George Square Studios – Studio Four (Venue 17) 

WHEN: 12:55 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

Yes, this will be the first time in Edinburgh for both Nell and me. We’re really excited to be up there, and get to experience firsthand all the Edinburgh lore. Whenever we tell people we’re going up, they respond by either literally squealing with excitement, an involuntary shudder, telling us to pack a bag full of vitamins, or unveiling a parchment scroll of their favourite street corners. We’re really excited that we will soon be a part of that now.

Also, my Scottish grandmother is absolutely thrilled and convinced that I’ll be converted by the charms of Edinburgh and move out of England.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

I was supposed to take a show to the Fringe in 2020 that was obviously derailed due to pandemic. Since then I’ve learned that bringing twelve enormous moth puppets from the States to Edinburgh Fringe was probably not my best, nor cost-effective, idea.

Alright, but really, I feel like a big learning over the last few years has been accepting that things probably won’t go to plan, and that that is just part of the process. That one has been harder to learn, but important.

Tell us about your show.

This play is really about how we mould each other (ha ha – wax sculpting, get it?); that people in our lives sometimes weave in and out, leaving behind these huge impacts on who we are. And I think maybe that’s not such a horrible thing.

Through our first staged reading at the Golden Goose in London, to the sadly cancelled VAULT festival, to restaging for a preview run up at the Pleasance, this play has been shaped by so many incredible creatives.

Writing the first draft in deep, dark Covid times in Oregon, I could never have imagined the incredible people this play would bring into my life. I met our brilliant, sensitive director Nell from a mutual friend on Zoom. We both moved to London amid pandemic, and decided to workshop ‘wax figure’ a bit. Now, here we are.

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

Y’all. I don’t know how people do this. The list of incredible shows I want to see is so long. Does anyone blink, let alone sleep, for the entire month of August?

Theatre-wise, I’m really excited to see ‘Hungry’ at Roundabout, ‘Caste-ing’ with Nouveau Riche, ‘Speed Dial’ from Spies Like Us, ‘Happy Meal’ by lovely Tabby Lamb, and so many more. Also, I’m pumped to see the wonderful comics who performed at our big cabaret fundraiser in June — Jo Griffin, Diane Chorley, and Celya AB. Just fabulous people (and the cherry on top is they’re all incredibly talented).

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EdFringe Talk: Aidan Sadler: Tropicana

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“Keep an eye out for performers out on the street without huge gimmicks, big casts. Those are usually the hidden gems of the Fringe.”

WHO: Aidan Sadler

WHAT: “Join queer cabaret icon Aidan Sadler as they take you on the award-winning journey to Tropicana! Nothing is safe from ridicule so be led on an exploration of body image, heteronormativity and sometimes wearing a dress round the house on a muggy day. Here, you’ll experience belting 80’s synth-pop nostalgia punctuated with world class stand-up comedy. Featuring electrifying 80’s hits from Spandau Ballet to ABC, Tropicana returns to Fringe from its sell-out, extended run in 2021 to explore, bend and abuse the gender binary.”

WHERE: Assembly George Square – The Blue Room (Venue 8) 

WHEN: 22:20 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This will be Tropicana’s second go at the Edinburgh Fringe and my god is it a different year to last! The festival last year created so many magical connections – I still see all of the people I met on a regular basis, how crazy is that?! I feel like in the real world that never happens! We all have this joint experience (or trauma depending on the season) and we use it to connect and bond.

A great festival happens about half way through when the collective, city-wide burnout kicks in. That’s when the real fun begins and the insanity starts to unfold and everyone begins to come together to just… Make it happen! You need a toilet roll delivered to half way down the royal mile? A message is sent into the ether and there, in front of you it appears! It’s all great fun, god I’ve missed it.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

Don’t take anything for granted! Your entire life can be snatched away from you in a heart beat, and the powers that you think have it all figured out probably don’t! The reality of society is anarchy! Pure chaos! I’m rejecting all of the lessons I learned pre pandemic and embracing the new ones. How many apocalypses (apocali?) will we collectively experience? Let’s go crazy, write that show you’ve always wanted to write, make a move on the guy you’ve been flirting with for the last year, record a cover of your favourite song! Oh, and book tickets to Tropicana (duh).

Tell us about your show.

I wrote this silly little thing over the pandemic when I was in quite a dark place (no spoilers!) and since debuting last year at the fringe it has spiralled into this gargantuan creature that has toured the UK, performed an off-west end run and rocked Brighton Fringe, it’s just been insane. I have to perpetually pinch myself that this is just what I do now. From nothing to… something!

The company was created out of a handful of my friends who were made redundant over the pandemic who had also gone freelance. This was our opportunity to get out of our funk, and boy has Tropicana got us out of it! None of us had ever done anything like this before so it was an awesome (and sometimes soul destroying) journey. I feel like we’re now a gorgeous sexy dysfunctional unit, working together to make a very professional looking grassroots show happen.

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

Keep an eye out for performers out on the street without huge gimmicks, big casts. Those are usually the hidden gems of the Fringe. And my god, is it lonely to try and plug and sell your wares to the general public.

My biggest recommendation is Hummus: After Dark. It’s a surrealist stand-up, monologue-y, music-y thing that is offensive, silly and will make you look at Hummus differently for the rest of your life. Some other friends – PotatoHead (bonkers), I Am Not A Gorilla (insane), Laurie Black (punky) Clementine (unhinged). For a cabaret person I sure am recommending a lot of character comedy!!!! Being on the road a lot I’ve had the joy of seeing so many awesome acts, sorry if I missed you out!

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EdFringe Talk: Mrs Roosevelt Flies to London

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2022 by

“The Fringe is special because it’s in beautiful atmospheric Edinburgh; it offers an amazing range of global live performance, it’s been at it for a few years, and there’s always a mood of celebration and kindliness, I’ve found, which makes it about coming together and celebrating talent, and difference.”

WHO: Alison Skilbeck

WHAT: “Returning to Edinburgh following a near sell-out 2016 Assembly season, Alison Skilbeck’s critically acclaimed one-woman show reveals the public and private life of one of the most extraordinary women of the 20th Century, Eleanor Roosevelt, from her daring trip to wartime Britain to her unconventional partnership with President Roosevelt. Granted special permission to use Eleanor’s diary and daily newspaper columns, this is the story of a passionate humanitarian, a woman beset by deep personal insecurities and tragedy, but one who never lost her passionate belief in the strength of the human spirit.”

WHERE: Assembly George Square Studios – Studio Five (Venue 17) 

WHEN: 10:25 (75 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

No. I was first here as a student in the Oxford Revue, in 1967. Then not until 2008 for just a week with my first show ARE THERE MORE OF YOU, then I and the wonderful Jacqui brought that show again in 2011, then Mrs Roosevelt in 2016 ( near sell out!) then THE POWER BEHIND THECRONE in 2017, celebrating Shakespeare’s older women, then in 2018 ARE THERE MORE OF YOU again, a very very near sell-out! The Fringe is special because it’s in beautiful atmospheric Edinburgh; it offers an amazing range of global live performance, it’s been at it for a few years, and there’s always a mood of celebration and kindliness, I’ve found, which makes it about coming together and celebrating talent, and difference. These are the qualities that make for a great festival – taking time to experience it all being curious, being surprised, being afraid in a good challenging way.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

Since 2019 and the lockdown I’ve learnt how crucial live performance is to our human health. We need it. We need same time, same place communication, communion, and are poor without it. I just premiered a new show ( set during the pandemic) at the Buxton Festival, and the feeling of sharing something again was wonderful. I’ve also learnt to keep at the creativity, and have written two shows. I’ve learnt that as an artist , as an actress, you have to find ways to practise in the way painters and musicians do. I teach actors and non-actors, but most of all I develop my own stuff. I suppose it’s never give up, and don’t take ‘no’ for an answer. No idea if this is what ‘you’ wanted?!

Tell us about your show.

After my first show pure imagination – I wanted to write about someone famous, and it had to be someone I sympathised with. Eleanor Roosevelt, life long campaigner for peace, democracy, and human rights equality, was the one. I researched and wrote at the British Library, visited the Roosevelt Library in the US and was much helped, got permission to use her writings from her grand-daughter, and premiered it at the RADA festival in 2013. My wonderful producer Jacqui garbett of Hint of Lime ever at the helm. I toured Ireland, had a run at the king’s Head in 2015 with discussions after with Dame Helena Kennedy among others, and then brought it to Edinburgh in 2016 for its near sell-out run. I’ve toured the UK and also taken it to France. No idea where it might go after this time… It’s not all serious; tells her life story through her trip to London in 1942, and I play a total of 27 characters, some very funny, like the posh Mrs Egereton Warburton of the Cheshire WVS.

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

I’m sure there’s loads I don’t yet know about but friends shows, well, do see SPOONS at Gilded Balloon, MULAN and WAR OF THE WORLDS at same venue; HANDS AND FLOWERS by some terrific Oxford students, are Surgeons Hall, and BLOODY DIFFICULT WOMEN at Assembly. Oh and the one woman THIS IS PARADISE at Traverse.

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EdFringe Talk: Eme Essien: Flat Shoes In The Club

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2022 by

“Having gone to the Fringe for many years prior to now performing, I have a sense of what audiences expect, what keeps them engaged and what can really stand out in a sea of posters that get lost amongst the noise.”

WHO: Eme Essien

WHAT: “Ever wondered what takes a girl so long to get ready on a night out? It’s Saturday night, the big girls’ night out and this girl is trying to get ready on time. Unfortunately, people won’t stop interrupting her. Delve into her world as she figures out what to wear, how to do her hair and what to do when she gets there. Uncensored, dishevelled and sincere, this is the internal conflict of a woman trying to achieve modern ideals and aspirations, in an hour of character comedy from award winner Eme Essien.”

WHERE: Underbelly, Bristo Square – Buttercup (Venue 302) 

WHEN: 15:45 (60 min)

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Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

I have been going to the Fringe for years as an audience member. It is an experience like no other and I love the experience. There are a lot of shows to filter through and the experience can be quite overwhelming, particularly as I am a solo traveller. I think that what is so unique about Ed Fringe is the mix of seasoned artists and performers and newcomers who are showcasing new material and everything in between. All this within walking distance (mostly) and every year, I found a gem that would get me super fired up and eager to showcase my own work. I really love how engaged the audiences are and for the most part, they are truly willing you to succeed and ready to be entertained.

Having gone to the Fringe for many years prior to now performing, I have a sense of what audiences expect, what keeps them engaged and what can really stand out in a sea of posters that get lost amongst the noise.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

Wheeew that was a year for me! It was a lot. I had so many unexpected things thrown my way around the time of my solo sketch show, ‘You’re Definitely invited.’ I really came out of it feeling so empowered battling through my anxiety condition and learning not to take myself so seriously. I am a classic overthinker and perfectionist and so letting those habits go and just doing, trying, experimenting has been a joy this time around.

Tell us about your show.

‘Flat Shoes in the Club??’ is a comedy theatre show watching this “Girl” get ready for this big night out. There is dance and music and a lot of high energy but also a real sense of intimacy in that you are watching a young woman in her private space with all her thoughts uncensored. Told through the voice of a young Black woman, it’s a bit silly, a bit deep and just generally upbeat.

The show is written and completely self-produced by me. I did an earlier work in progress back in 2016 and so this is it all fleshed out. I hope to tour it after Edinburgh and have some plans for some screen content as well!

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

Go and see “Soulful Magic” by Magical Bones @ The Assembly. The show is going to be sick! He is an extraordinary talent and engaging Magician with great Hip Hop flair. He is also my brother and did not pay me to say this!

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EdFringe Talk: Hiya Dolly!

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“The state of Louisiana has provided much of the funding for the play’s production in Edinburgh – not the most obvious guess one might make about who would back a play about Dolly the Sheep, but it underlines the universality of the goal of bridging art and science.”

WHO: Vince LiCata: Writer

WHAT: “The true story of how a cute, attention-seeking lamb became the most famous sheep in history – the world’s first cloned mammal. Lab created and born at the Roslin Institute outside Edinburgh, Dolly lived the good life. A worldwide celebrity who never left her farm. Mother to six lovely lambs. She changed biology forever and irrevocably changed the lives of all her human parents. Who were they? How did they do it? Where are they now? Come find out how to clone a sheep in this new play laced with ‘Dollified’ Scottish tunes and plenty of woolly humour.”

WHERE: theSpace @ Surgeons Hall – Grand Theatre (Venue 53) 

WHEN: 20:00 (70 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

I’ve been to the Fringe 6 times before. I’ve always been impressed by the quality of the theatre work. The Fringe seems like many different worlds/realities simultaneously overlapping, which is what makes it so exciting. Only a small portion of it is real theatre by any expanded definition of that word, but having it alongside the acrobatics and the camp and the stand up comedy and the performance art is dizzyingly exciting. The DIY aesthetic of Fringe theatre shows I find especially attractive. I’ve always liked “work in progress” more than a full polished show- it’s the theatrical risk taking that is thrilling. One reason I deliberately mixed up so many different theatrical styles in HIYA DOLLY! – like placing real cell biology alongside comic parody songs – was to take a bunch of theatrical risks and to hopefully make something that no one has really seen before.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

A big thing I learned from the pandemic is that science literacy in the general public is so bad that a virus that was stoppable by two months of mask wearing instead went on for years and killed many millions totally needlessly. Why won’t people learn a little science? Especially politicians? Are they afraid of it? Are they afraid that it steals away some of their personal agency? I teach science and am haunted by this question. Another reason I wrote HIYA DOLLY! was to do an experiment – to ask: would people enjoy learning about the process of nucleus transfer if you made it into a musical with a talking sheep? If we don’t get a higher percentage of the human population to at least “like” science and try to follow its findings, then our planet is truly in it’s third act – and it’s not going to have a happy ending.

Tell us about your show.

HIYA DOLLY! is a next play in a series of plays that ask the question: how much science can you cram into a play and still have it be a play – an entertaining, dramatic, comedic, engaging story with real characters who solve real, but scientific problems? The state of Louisiana has provided much of the funding for the play’s production in Edinburgh – not the most obvious guess one might make about who would back a play about Dolly the Sheep, but it underlines the universality of the goal of bridging art and science. That’s a goal that spans across countries and cultures and art forms and languages – in this instance spanning from the swamps of Louisiana to the moors of Scotland with the goal of telling the scientific and human story of the making of Dolly the Sheep.

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

Hiya Dolly! is being produced by Andy Jordan. He is also presenting Leaving Vietnam in the same venue- a gripping solo play by the award-winning actor-playwright Richard Vergette. It links the disillusion and frustration of veterans with Trump’s rise to become US president. Andy says Richard is an excellent storyteller and master of surprise revelations.

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EdFringe Talk: Leaving Vietnam

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2022 by

“I like to think that the experiences of the last two years has made people a little more willing to celebrate each other’s work and treat other companies and performers as colleagues rather than competitors.”

WHO: Richard Vergette

WHAT: “When Jimmy Vanderberg leaves the Ford factory in Detroit and volunteers to serve in Vietnam, he wants to prove himself a man. But after the war, Jimmy returns to a country more humiliated than grateful and feels abandoned by those he served. Years later, Jimmy decides to “Make America Great Again” but a chance visit by the son of a fallen comrade forces him to doubt his convictions. A gripping solo play by award-winning actor/playwright Richard Vergette. ‘An excellent storyteller… master of surprise revelations. A complex and demanding play that is a pleasure to watch’ (BritishTheatre.com).”

WHERE: theSpace @ Surgeons Hall – Theatre 2 (Venue 53) 

WHEN: 19:05 (65 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

I am something of a seasoned fringe veteran! However, this is my first fringe as a performer/writer for more than 20 years. I first came to the fringe in 1984, hiring a slot from the old Wilkie House in Cowgate – that later became The Gilded Balloon. I did a one man show called The Pedagogue by James Saunders. It was reviewed by the great Haydn Murphy, an Edinburgh based Irish poet who was reviewing for The Scotsman that year. We met up in Bannerman’s bar afterwards and drank a few pints and smoked a pack of Embassy Regals! I’ve wanted to come back for some time but not until I’d found the right project.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

Since 2019 I’ve been through a lot personally and professionally. I retired as a teacher so I could devote more time to writing – but not necessarily performing. My Mum died last year and my wife is recovering from a serious illness. The lesson for me was ‘If you feel passionate about something, don’t hang around for anyone to give you permission – seize the day!’ I like to think that the experiences of the last two years has made people a little more willing to celebrate each other’s work and treat other companies and performers as colleagues rather than competitors. Edinburgh can feel bloody lonely if you’re in a one person show that’s not doing well but I’ve had some great exchanges on Twitter with writers and performers at the same venue. We’ve all promised to support each other’s work. For me the big lesson from the pandemic is to find the joy in each other’s work and try to help each other out.

Tell us about your show.

I wrote the show. It’s a one man show so the great thing is I don’t have to wait for the cast to turn up to rehearsals. I watched the 10 part series (written and produced by Ken Burns) The Vietnam War. It was probably the most devastating and brilliant documentary series I’ve watched. I came to the end of it and said out loud ‘There’s a play here’. So I watched it all over again with a notebook in front of me. When I retired from teaching my class have me a notebook with a printed front page which read “Don’t stop writing”. The notes I took, literally filled the book. But I didn’t just want to write a play about the past. It seemed to me that there was a real link between the bitterness, anger and pain experienced by many of the US veterans and the sense of dislocation and abandonment that Trump tapped into during his 2016 election campaign. My character, Jimmy, is a car worker from Michigan. He developed over time but there were a number of specifics that led to me choosing a car worker from Michigan. Before he became Defense Secretary in 1964, Robert MacNamara had been President of the Ford Motor Company. Also Michigan was a Rust Belt state that had been Democrat for many years but voted for Trump in 2016.

Being a one man show, there is a great opportunity to develop a relationship with the audience. Jimmy sometimes jokes with them but also uses them as a confessional. He’s a man troubled by his past and anxious to be absolved from it. Whilst he’s a man who often says and does the wrong thing, he’s worthy of our respect. I’m so excited to be playing him and telling his story.

I’m very fortunate in having a great friend, Andy Jordan, who’s a producer. In 2019 I ‘pitched’ this idea to him and amazingly, he went for it! Andy Jordan Productions is a a great company to work with and I’m eternally grateful to all of the team. Without them I suspect I’d be performing in a garden shed somewhere in Morningside! I also have another great friend, Andy Pearson, the director, who I’ve known since – well actually since we did an Edinburgh show together!: The Little Rats in George Square Theatre for The National Youth Music Theatre. We’ve been friends ever since and worked together frequently.

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

Andy Jordan is directing Hiya Dolly! in the Grand Theatre (venue 53) every day at 20.00. Its the extraordinary but true story of Dolly the Sheep – the world’s first cloned mammal who was created and born at the Roslin Institute just outside Edinburgh. Andy tells me that as well as telling you all about Dolly, unusually it its tells you a bit about the science of cloning. It also has several live Scottish folk tunes which give a fresh twist and plenty of woolly humour.

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EdFringe Talk: Luke Rollason: Bowerbird

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2022 by

“I’ve been building this show with audiences since May 2021, including a stop at the reduced Edinburgh Fringe last year. My last pre-Fringe stop was at Buxton Fringe, where I was nominated for Best Comedy Show and won the award for Originality.”

WHO: Luke Rollason

WHAT: “Welcome to the great indoors. This ‘gut-bustingly funny’ **** (List) bird-brained boy has been hoarding his best show yet and he’s finally ready to give it away to a good home. Like visiting IKEA on acid, this is a psychedelic domestic breakdown that will make you totally rethink your mundane little life. Star of the upcoming Disney+ series Extraordinary. As seen on Channel 4’s viral series The B@IT.”

WHERE: Monkey Barrel Comedy (The Hive) – Hive 2 (Venue 313) 

WHEN: 12:30 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

My very first trip to Edinburgh was nine years ago, terrifyingly, although I’ve only been doing comedy shows here since 2017. I wasted a good few years doing terrible devised theatre pieces, which is the best training in the world. Nothing will make you appreciate doing a comedy show than doing a fair few runs of Sarah Kane’s 4.48 Psychosis. So don’t be angry at all those student productions slaughtering the classics with physical theatre. They’re comedians in training.

Weirdly, because of the long hiatus between now and the last “proper” Fringe, this feels like doing a solo show in Edinburgh for the first time again. I really don’t feel like I know how it works, or what the rules are, or what it’s going to be like for me. The unpredictable is both the best and the worst thing about the Fringe.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

In 2019 I was doing a terrifyingly high-concept hour about the internet and its effect on our brain chemistry – but as a mime show. It was insanely ambitious, with the most complicated tech I’ve ever worked with run off a 2006 Powerpoint Slideshow. It was a solo show with a cast of three other performers, and I got delivered in an Amazon box at the start of every show. Sometimes we were waiting ages for an audience member to come and open that front door. I had a loop pedal going of the audience’s own laughter, and a live feed to a webcam. The show was kind of devouring itself, live onstage.

I was trying to make a comment about how precious live performance is and how technology can distract us from living in the present. But I think you make a better argument by just, you know, making a more enjoyable live experience. This show is a bright-orange dayglo denial of all the darkness outside the door – it’s a celebratory ode to the great indoors, and is filled with all the stupid stuff I did with the objects I was trapped with for the last few years. Deciding early on that I wasn’t going to create the kind of limitations I gave myself in 2019 really helped me slowly shape this show as opportunities for live performance waxed and waned post-pandemic.

Tell us about your show.

The show is called Luke Rollason: Bowerbird, and it’s like a psychedelic tour of an IKEA. It’s Toy Story for people who own too much furniture, featuring an armchair singing the lost loves that left behind their bum imprints, abandoned utensils with uncertain parenthood, and the sordid spooning going on in your cutlery drawer.

I’ve been building this show with audiences since May 2021, including a stop at the reduced Edinburgh Fringe last year. My last pre-Fringe stop was at Buxton Fringe, where I was nominated for Best Comedy Show and won the award for Originality.

I’ve got the most lovely and supportive team in Objectively Funny (a production company run by comedians) who have nursed this show through real ups and downs, including breaking my hand which was a NIGHTMARE for a mime artist. I am now bimanual once again.

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

After my show, my audience should go watch The Lovely Boys. Joe Kent-Walters and Mikey Bligh-Smith are two Northern lads doing some of the most bizarre and creative comedy on the scene. Joe recently won the Chortle Student Comedy Award, and Mikey has a secret little cameo in my show. Performing with him in previews has been such a joy – he’s a fantastic talent.

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EdFringe Talk: James Barr: Straight Jokes

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2022 by

“I’ve already printed a spelling mistake on all of my posters. There goes the best poster award!”

WHO: James Barr

WHAT: “People keep telling James he’s “too gay”. Straight Jokes is his fabulous reply. An out-of-control hour of jokes from the utterly hilarious, nearly national treasure. James roasts his ex-employers and navigates the exhausting admin of finally accepting who you are. A battle cry to be yourself. The gay half of hit comedy podcast A Gay and A NonGay, which has had over 5 million listens, and co-host of The Hits Radio Breakfast Show. The award-winning ginger returns to Edinburgh after his five-star 2019 debut, Thirst Trap”

WHERE: Underbelly, Bristo Square – Daisy (Venue 302) 

WHEN: 20:45 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This is my second Edinburgh Fringe and I’m absolutely buzzing. The intersectionality of performers, stories and audiences make Edinburgh Fringe the most prestigious festival in the world. I used to come to the fringe as a tourist every year, desperate to perform! I’m so proud to be coming back.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

Probably not. I’ve already printed a spelling mistake on all of my posters. There goes the best poster award! I am getting up super early for my breakfast show on Hits Radio every day throughout the fringe, so I think I’ll definitely be prioritizing naps and avoiding wine!

Tell us about your show.

I’ve been performing at loads of open mic and new material nights in both London and New York to write my new hour- it’s the result of over 10 months of writing and I am enormously excited to premiere it in Edinburgh. My director is comedy performer, producer and writer Chris Gau (The Free Association, Borderline, Screen Grab).

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

I’m really excited to see Grace Campbell’s new show- her tiktok makes me die! Jen Ives: Peak Trans is definitely one to watch! There’s so much nonsense about our trans family in both the press and problematic comedians’ Netflix specials- it will be completely refreshing to see a trans comedian tell their own jokes.

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EdFringe Talk: Collision

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2022 by

“A few weeks to relax and recover is always necessary after August finishes.”

WHO: Jesse Scott

WHAT: “B-boy meets Bendy boy. Hip-hop and Hula Hooper. Pop, lock and adagio. Collision is a cross-pollination of contemporary circus and street dance, teaming together two Brisbane powerhouses, Casus Creations and Mad Dance House. Casus Creations is a pioneer contemporary arts company known for ground-breaking acrobatics and physical poetry with a reputation as a leader in the contemporary circus on the world stage. Mad Dance House is mover and shaker in the urban and street dance international scene, responsible for some of Australia’s most charismatic and celebrated street dancers. Collision is an explosion for your senses!”

WHERE: Assembly George Square Gardens – Piccolo (Venue 3) 

WHEN: 14:55 (60 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

This will be my ninth time at Edinburgh fringe and I’m still as excited as I was the first time I came, there’s always something new to discover and old friends to reconnect with. The fringe is a furious and fast paced month were selling your show is the name of the game. A few weeks to relax and recover is always necessary after August finishes.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2019 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

The world has certainly changed since 2019 we as a company are definitely trying to bring joy and connection to the stage more than ever. The biggest lesson I’ve learned has been solidifying the idea that art is important to uplift and engage humanity.

Tell us about your show.

Collision brings together three incredible Street dances and three incredible circus performers. The show was directed by Natano Fa’anana, codirected by myself and Lachlan McAulay and produced by the incredible cluster arts. Collision has add four seasons and we come to Edinburgh having always sold out every show we have performed. We can’t wait to continue the success and show the world this energetic and joyous show.

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

I would highly recommend seeing Casting off and Zoe by a good catch playing at the Roxy.

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