Joe Sutherland: The Edinburgh Interviews 2019
Who? Joe Sutherland
What? Sour
Where? PBH’s Free Fringe @ Banshee Labyrinth – Cinema Room (Venue 156)
When? 22:10
What are your feelings as you enter into this year’s Edinburgh Fringe season?
All of them. All feelings. Excitement, dread, occasionally indifference. The more Fringes you do, the more you develop a routine for getting into the rhythm of it. I wish I could go back and tell myself five years ago that six hours of yoga (aka re-watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer) is the only way to get through it.
What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?
How the reunion of a certain 90’s girl group gave me an existential crisis.
What is the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?
The many court appearances I’ve had to make to defend libellous jokes against former Eastenders stars.
Has your attitude towards the Fringe changed at all in recent years?
Having done a few, I now see it as a chance to work and just get on with doing what I do and learning how to make it better. I try to tweak the show every day so that by the end of the month it’s perfectly aerodynamic. Some people would have you believe that a show should be in that shape at the beginning of the month but when previewing to five drunks in the back of a pub, who all have one eye on the telly above the bar, is not always going to aide the development of your narrative arc.
Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?
So many: Helen Bauer, Sophie Duker, Mickey Overman, Maisie Adam, Chloe Petts and Sam Lake, Nathan Roberts, Kai Samra, Janine Harouni, Yuriko Kotani, Patrick Spicer, Huge Davies, Olga Koch – they’re all brilliant performers doing first or second shows so they’re buzzing with fresh ideas and creativity.