Edinburgh Fringe Q&A: Kathrine Payne

Tell us about your show. What can audiences expect?

plewds is a fast-paced and darkly funny deep dive into a queer relationship gone bad. It attempts to tell a story we rarely hear, and uses every trick in the book to do it. Expect drag, clowning, X Factor lip syncs, confusion, an angry northern detective, and the nagging feeling that something isn’t right.

plewds is about queerness, the false binaries we all like to create, and the reluctance to see what’s right in front of us. It's also about Hollie Steele’s breakdown on the Britain’s Got Talent live semi-finals in 2009.

Why is this an important story to tell?

plewds is important because we haven’t seen it on stage before! plewds grapples with its own lack of cultural reference points; we’re watching someone figure something out with nowhere to turn to for answers.

I think queer people desperately deserve more nuanced representation. Stories that aren’t just either ‘queer trauma’ or ‘queer people good/straight people bad’. Stories that aren’t afraid to point a finger back at ourselves. Stories that are as messy and complex and human as we are.

Can you talk about some of the creative team involved?

I am so proud of our brilliant team of queer + trans creatives that have made plewds happen. The show is co-created with Jess Haygarth, who is the Artistic Director of Sweet Beef Theatre (this year’s Charlie Hartill winners – check out Crying Shame at Pleasance). Catts and Body Show legend Frankie Thompson has led dramaturgy, designer Shahaf Beer has made a disgusting sparkly pink vomit set, sound designer Livvy Lynch has remixed Beyonce’s 'Baby Boy' into glitchy oblivion, and lighting designer Han Sayles has given us gorgeous gay lighting! For movement I have worked with the brilliant Naissa Bjorn and drag artist Wet Mess (whose solo show Testo at Zoo Venues is going be amazing).

Where do you draw inspiration from for your work, both in terms of creation and performance?

I’m inspired by funny, weird, nostalgic things; I have rewatched hours of old episodes of The X Factor for plewds (turns out a lot of it is really really dark). Also cabaret and drag artists, clowns – all the people making sexy, strange stuff for live performance that breaks down the barriers between audience and performer. I love making a mess on stage and am super inspired by artists like Elizabeth Gunawan and Lucy McCormick, making grotesque, unpredictable, trash theatre. Working with Frankie Thompson was sick; I loved the way her shows Catts and Body Show dealt with painful, personal topics in a darkly funny way. I think solo shows can be really lonely, so making plewds collaboratively with director Jess was a gamechanger – we have a very similar taste for the surreal and dark sense of humour.

What are your thoughts on the festival in general and how do you feel about being a part of it this year?

plewds is the winner of Summerhall’s Mary Dick Award and also received Keep It Fringe funding – two awards that have made our Fringe run possible. The Fringe is otherwise very financially inaccessible, so this support has been a game changer. I’m looking forward to supporting other artists bringing work up despite the barriers, because it’s tough out there! I am also so excited to be performing at Summerhall; it’s a venue I love that takes risks with their programming and believes in their artists.

What show are you most looking forward to seeing in August, and why?

I’ve seen a work-in-progress and Ugly Sisters by piss / carnation is going to be brilliant – angry, hilarious, uncomfortable, heartbreaking.

What’s the one piece of advice you’d give a performer coming to Edinburgh for the first time?

Be nice to venue staff – they are overworked, underpaid, and the only thing keeping the festival running!

Even in the madness of Fringe: it’s not that deep, it’s just a show.

How can Edinburgh audiences keep up with you beyond the festival?

@plewdsplewdsplewds on Insta

@kathrine_payne on Twitter