Dreamgun: The Edinburgh Interviews 2019
Who? Dreamgun (Heber Hanley)
What? Film Reads
Where? Underbelly, Bristo Square – The Dairy Room (Venue 302)
When? 22:15
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
The perfect mix of excitement and trepidation. Edinburgh is such a hectic festival with so many highs and lows. There’s the constant fear that you won’t be able to get anyone to see the show or that everyone will hate it. Also I find there’s always some curveball that gets thrown at you no matter how much preparation you do so you have to stay on your toes.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
Film Reads is big dumb comedy show where we take our favourite films, cut the script down to an hour and stuff it full of jokes and nonsense. Each night we do a totally new film like Jurassic Park, Harry Potter, Jaws or Silence of the Lambs. None of it is rehearsed and the cast are literally reading their lines for the first time on stage which gives it a ramshackle charm.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
I think probably just the size of our cast. I know that seems like a very technical answer but we’ve got a relatively large cast (8 people) and so it can make it a little unwieldy for travelling. But the upside is when we make it to Edinburgh you’ve got a team of the best people in the planet at your side for support.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
Completely. Especially before my first Fringe there was no way I could have predicted what to expect. No matter how many people I talked to you can’t understand until you’ve just done it. This is only my third Fringe but second going over with this show and you just have to sort of take it as it comes. The first two years I went over with pretty lofty expectations and the Fringe promptly knocked me on my ass.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
Shout out to Alison Spittle, a very funny Irish comedian. She’s incredibly charming on stage and also just one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet. Another Irish Comedian, Tony Cantwell is someone you absolutely should not miss. It’s his first Edinburgh and he’s going to knock it out of the park. I’d also recommend checking out Double Denim. We performed with them in Adelaide and they’re two incredibly funny women. I’d also finally recommend going to see whatever Mat Ewins has cooked up this year as it’s certainly going to be genius.
Where would you like to be in a year’s time?
Ideally I’d love to be working full time doing the show or just comedy writing in general. It’s what I enjoy doing the most in my life so if I ever got the opportunity to quit my day job and do it full time I’d be over the moon.