You meet all sorts of people at Edinburgh Fringe and Viv Ford has an amazing story to tell. The US comic accidentally ended up living with some of the architects of bitcoin in San Francisco – right at the beginning. Did she cash in? Can you? You’ll have to see her show to find out.
Tell us about your show. Why should we go and see it?
Viv Ford: New Kids on the Blockchain (directed by Elizabeth Bennett) is the true story of when, at the age of 22, I landed in San Francisco for a job in tech and ended up moving into a house called the Crypto Castle. I was the only girl amongst 14 crypto bros and the only one who didn’t care about crypto. Meanwhile the crypto bros had a deep love affair with it but quite the opposite reaction towards humanity. To them, the ideal life was living forever with their artificially intelligent girlfriends surrounded by bitcoin.
Instead of being repulsed or turned off by their mindset, I dove in completely. I was obsessed with how these guys saw the world and lived their lives. Every month that passed, bitcoin’s price kept going up. Were these guys right about the future?! I wanted more of it.
I actually ended up living at the Crypto Castle for four years (yes, you are correct. Four years is much too long of a time to live at any house that has a name). Three years in, the price of bitcoin jumped to $20,000 per coin. And all of a sudden, reporters had questions about the crypto castle. Random people traveled from all over in hopes of finding the key to wealth. The main tenant always told me, “wealth and fame make you more of who you already are.” Boy did I get to see who these boys really were and just how far I would go in an attempt to fit in and get a piece of it all.
Whether you hate crypto, love crypto, or don’t care at all about it, I promise you’ll enjoy the show. Ultimately, it’s a hilarious story about a girl who grew up with almost no technology and found herself trying to fit into a very techy world. It tackles some bigger questions like, who is actually building the future of our world and should we be worried. Plus, if you have any questions about crypto, I offer a 15 minute free 1:1 crypto intro to folks who come to the show (it’s not investment advice!!).
What makes you laugh?
I love when things go wrong…that sounds bad but let me explain. I love news bloopers when a news anchor is trying to get through a story and starts uncontrollably laughing and genuinely can’t stop. It’s such an honest expression of emotion and there’s nothing more contagious than seeing someone laugh so hard. One of the funniest videos on the internet is a local production of Peter Pan. It’s clearly being filmed by a parent in the audience because the quality isn’t great. But in the span of 7 minutes, everything goes wrong starting with a set that falls in the middle of one of the character’s monologues. Then, Peter Pan is supposed to fly into the scene but something must have gone wrong with the tech because Wendy, who is lying in bed, gets pulled out and starts floating above the scene. I should note that no one got hurt. It’s absolute internet gold, I’d highly recommend checking it out. And to reiterate, no one got hurt!
What three words best describe your performance style – and why?
Improvisational, casual, sarcastic.
My background is in improvisational comedy so that’s how I feel best onstage. I’ve been doing improv for 10+ years and find it very hard to ignore the audience’s reactions. I’ll find myself just reacting to an audience reaction unknowingly. I’ve actually had the thought before that if I’m ever onstage in a role that requires me to be performing in a more serious manner where I can’t respond to the audience, I truly don’t know if I’d be able to! I can’t control it! Someone sneezed in my show in San Francisco and I said bless you!
Casual because when I’m on stage, I try to imagine I’m having a beer with my audience and just telling them a fun story. Everyone can see right through dishonesty on stage and the truth about storytelling is that it’s done best when it’s genuine and not for show but more for the goodness of the story. Like, it’s such a good story, you just have to hear it. Acting like you’re telling the story will kill a story. TELL IT. If it’s too polished, it feels like a Ted Talk. There’s a reason no one would tell you they love watching Ted Talks. It’s bad content. It’s interesting facts, sometimes, but most of the time, the presentation is cringe.
And sarcastic because a lot of the show takes place in 2015 with me as a 22 year old. I’m 31 now. The jokes are like, oh a 22 year old would do this. So I find myself judging my 22 year self quite a bit and the best way I have found to turn that into humor is to be sarcastic and dry.
Do you have nerves about going on stage and how do you cope with them.
I actually feel more nervous if I’m not nervous before going on stage. The famous line of, “nerves mean you care” stays with me. I used to do three pushups before each show which I felt would put me in a good headspace. But then I would jump up to run onstage, and immediately start seeing stars and feeling lightheaded. So I switched to giving myself a high-five in the mirror. That seems to calm me down.
What’s your idea of a perfect Fringe feast and where will you eat it?
I’m excited to try Tattie scones and be brave and try black pudding. I’m always on the hunt for hole in the wall restaurants that most people skip over. Those always end up being the best meal. So any recs, please send them my way!!
How will your audience think/feel differently after an hour in your company?
I think a common reaction will be, “wow, do you think she was really telling the truth?!”. It’s a true story about a different group of people in the world that are not the average person. These people live and breathe and exist in the future. They think about the power structures that exist today and wonder how they can affect them so they have the power tomorrow. It’s actually a very fascinating world. A lot of these people think they are building the future for the better. Are they? It’s hard to say. My show asks the question of “what is real” and I think that’s an incredibly important question as we go more into the world of tech-focused and crypto. Audiences will also definitely walk away with an understanding of crypto culture, enough to call bullshit on things they may not have had the knowledge to do before.
When did you first realise you were born to be on stage?
When I was five years old, the cousins on my dad’s side of the family decided to put on Cinderella for our aunts and uncles. I was cast as Cinderella since I had blonde hair at the time but I was vehemently opposed to singing onstage (by stage, I mean my cousin’s basement). I knew my limits, singing was not going to be a pretty thing for anyone to see. So, we decided that my oldest cousin would sing and I would bury my face in my hands and lip sync. I remember finishing that show and thinking, wow that was actually pretty fun. I think I fooled everyone into thinking that I was the one singing (I fooled no one). But that started an interest in being on a stage and performing. Many years later I got into improvisational comedy and the rest is history!
Why do you think Edinburgh Fringe is so important to performers and artists around the world?
Simply put: worldwide accountability. There’s something that happens in my brain when I realize I have a show booked. I focus, I stress (not always bad), and I do what needs to be done to make sure the show will succeed. I know I’m not unique in this process. And I also know that booking shows is tough. Booking several shows in a month is tougher. And several shows in a week, well at that point you’re killing it. So the accountability that Edinburgh Fringe gives its performers and artists is inspiring and absolutely crucial to the expansion of the artist and the show that is being performed. Everyone “levels up” when they go to Fringe. They’ve created this opportunity for themselves! It’s literally betting on yourself in the best way possible and being accountable.
How do you plan to relax and enjoy the city when you’re not performing.
I’m a big cyclist (recently just finished a bicycle trip from Poland to Lithuania!) so I’m planning on renting a bike and going for lots of miles around the city. I find cycling to be the best way to experience a place. You can cover a lot of ground and see a lot of things in the process. A bus tends to be limiting because you don’t get the smells and sounds of back country roads. On a bike, you get it all!
Who is your showbiz idol and why.
I love Amy Poehler. First off, I find her to be one of the funniest, best improvisers I’ve ever seen and I hope one day to improvise with her. Also, she started her comedy career as an improviser which is inspiring since I did the same. Eventually she got cast on Saturday Night Live. And she hasn’t stopped! I’m constantly impressed with her hustle and creation of new ways to explore comedy. Most people know her from the sitcom Parks and Recreation which was an absolute hit, in large part because of her character Leslie Knope. I recently saw her perform at The Beacon with Tina Fey (who I also admire greatly) and was yet again, impressed with the expansion of comedy and how she is clearly unafraid to change her medium within comedy and go beyond improv and beyond sitcom humor.
What is your idea of a perfect Fringe moment?
Picture this: I’ve just finished my show for the day, it’s around 8pm, I’m on my way home to get some decent rest because I was partying for the last three nights, and I see a sign for an unknown show happening in 10 minutes in the basement of some restaurant. I say, screw it, I can sleep later. So I head inside. Maybe it’s packed, maybe it’s not. But I find a seat in the back. And I spend the next hour completely immersed in a world that is so beautifully crafted by the performers on stage. Maybe I sob, maybe I cry from laughing so hard. And then I grab a beer with one of the other audience members and learn that we went to the same improv school in San Francisco. Does that sound perfect or what?!
Viv Ford: New Kids on the Blockchain, 20.00, Just the Tonic @ Mash House, until August 25
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/viv-ford-new-kids-on-the-blockchain
