Tell us about your show. Why should we go and see it?
Lightweight is based on my year spent in a 28-day addiction treatment facility to recover from anorexia. Since I repeated the recovery program about 11 times there’s a lot of story to tell! The show is truly humorous and relatable, even if you don’t have experiences with eating disorders. There’s so many twists and turns in this show but I don’t want to give it away, I want you to see it!
Are you flying solo or are you part of a team?
I am flying completely solo. I am the producer, writer, performer, prop wrangler, and technical director at the Fringe. So yes, it’s me plus coffee for the month of August!
What are your hopes and dreams for the Fringe?
I hope that everyone attending Fringe remains healthy. I hope that my AirBnb is not haunted. I hope that my hair doesn’t get too frizzy when it rains. I dream that audiences will find, connect with, and love Lightweight.
What makes you laugh?
Cat videos! It doesn’t take much. Show me a cat doing something stupid!
What is it that made you a performer?
Being the middle child of a New York Irish-Italian family. No one listened to me. A perfect way to launch a child into performing.
How will your audience think/feel differently after an hour in your company?
You go into Lightweight thinking “how is anorexia funny?”. You leave understanding that it’s not funny… It’s the relationships with family, therapists, and peers that are funny. It’s other people’s misinterpretation of your pain that is funny. It’s the weird dreams and the ridiculous arguments we have with our demons that are funny. If you do have experience with addiction, you’ll come out of the show feeling understood and less alone. If you don’t have experience with it, you will see it with a fresh set of eyes and dare I say – an open heart.
Whose show – apart from your own – are you looking forward to seeing at the Edinburgh Fringe?
“The Funny Thing About Death”, by Kim Kalish. I had the opportunity to see this preview in Los Angeles and it absolutely blew me away! Kim masters the art of storytelling. I can’t wait to see it succeed at the Fringe!
What’s the most useful piece of advice you’ve been given?
My director, Lauren Weedman, told me to write Lightweight as though my family would never see it. I was holding back and being too kind, not wanting to offend anyone. I took her advice, and now the scenes that get the biggest reactions are the ones in which I portray my parents! I really went for it.
Do you have a favourite Fringe memory?
This is my first Fringe, I plan on creating a lot of favourite memories while I am there! Now taking recommendations!
Who is your showbiz/Fringe idol and why?
Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Does that seem like the obvious choice? It has nothing to do with chasing the success that she had after 2013 Fringe, but everything to do with how incredibly talented she is. Her presence and charisma, her balance of hard and soft… and her writing! She is an awe-inspiring force. Okay, and yeah… I would love to be as successful. I said it. Fine.
Lightweight, 14.50, Underbelly, Until August 29
