After an amazing response last year we have once again resurrected our Brighton Bites mini-interviews. These short and snappy Q&As offer an, occasionally witty – often hilarious, insight into the acts strutting, sailing, surfing (insert preferred form of transport here) in to join the line-up of England’s largest arts festival, Brighton Fringe. 2018 was a record-breaking year for the Fringe with over 575,000 people attending the festival; and with 2019 promising to be more inclusive than ever, our Bites aim to give you a taste of what’s in store across the 4,500+ events and performances that are on offer.
Next up, Alice Frick tells us about her show What the Frick!? which she’ll be performing at Junkyard Dogs: The Howler.
Describe your show in one sentence?
A request for sex talk in German, a crippling back injury, and coming out to her religious grandmother… Alice Frick, the confused Austrian abroad, knows the recipe for disaster well!
Why Brighton Fringe?
Besides the fact that I love Brighton, the sea and all the shops in the Laines…. I mostly love the people who run the venue I am performing at: Sarah-Jayne and Laura from the Junkyard Dogs. I think I have never met such lovely venue organisers, and then for the Fringe Festival this year it all fell into place. I got an opportunity to perform with them and just ecstatically said yes :)
How did the show get to where it is today?
I did have a back surgery, came out to my religious grandmother, and was also asked to do sex-talk in German (which massively failed in all ways imaginable). I have also read every self-help book available over the past years, so this all just came together into a show about the meaning of life through my experiences.
To really hone the show it took a bit more time: I run a monthly all-female comedy night in London, called Laughing Labia, so I took the chance to try out little bits of it throughout the year and then I just applied for some festivals. This gave me a deadline – and a lot of panic – but it made me put these little bits into a structured one-woman show.
What do you think sets your show apart from all the other festival offerings?
I think I am the only Austrian comedian at the festival. Moreover, I am probably the only Austrian, lesbian comedian in the world. So, if you want to see that nearly extinct species definitely come to my show! Other than that I think this is really hard to say as the magic of a festival is that there are so many different and unique shows.
What show do you not want to miss at this year’s Brighton Fringe (apart from your own!)?
I’d like to see as many shows as possible to get an inspiration high out of the festival. But there are two shows that I will definitely watch: one is called Epicene by Paul Diello, which is a gender-blending celebration of iconic women in music. I have seen it before, I will see it again and it won’t be the last time. I’m a huge fan of Paul. Also on the top of my list is Kate Smurthwaite with Clit Stirrer. Kate is a fantastic comedian and feminist. Every time I watch one of her shows I leave as a different person, so I am looking forward to that experience again.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given, or would give, for performing at a fringe festival?
It is worth flyering. That is the advice I would give, especially myself. I hate flying and always try to get out of it, but it is just the best way to get people into your show.
With the theme of this year’s festival being ‘DARE to Discover’, we’d like you to tell us a TRUTH – something about you or the show that fans may not know.
I can open my bra with one hand while I play saxophone. Not sure how I managed to find out that I can do that, but I can.
What the Frick!? runs at Brighton Fringe from 29 May – 1 June 2019. Brighton Fringe continues until 2 June 2019; www.brightonfringe.org
Nicole Craft | Image: Contributed
