Edinburgh Fringe Q&A: Sam Danson

Tell us about your show. What can audiences expect? What would you like audiences to take away from seeing this production at the Fringe?

This show is a fast-paced, entertaining comedy show about the highs and lows of discovering one’s identity.

Officially listed as one of the ‘must see acts’ at Glastonbury 2024, BI-TOPIA is a funny and relatable one-man-show that aims to connect with audiences to not only entertain, but to also encourage important conversations around underrepresented themes including macho-masculinity, mental health, sexuality and hate crime.

I’d like audiences to leave talking about their own experiences that came to mind while watching the show, whether it’s the father/son relationship portrayed, or the difficulties of dealing with figuring yourself out. Whether LGBTQ+ or otherwise, everybody has a turbulent time growing up, which is why this show has already resonated with a wide range of people.

Can you talk about some of the creative team involved?

The creative team is widely experienced and has been crucial to allowing me to successfully develop my first theatre show. Rikki Beadle-Blair is a multi-talented, multi-award-winning director that has been truly inspiring to work with, he has challenged and developed me in so many ways. Emmerson & Ward are the project’s co-producers, and they have also been crucial in the project coming to life, having supported since the start.

Dominic Patel is the show’s lighting and sound designer, among other things, and has really worked hard to push the show to be technically great in its own right, something that has stood out to audiences across the tour.

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

I’m so excited to be part of this year’s Edinburgh festival! After a successful year touring the show, it feels perfect to be part of the world’s most creatively diverse and exciting festival.

I can’t really talk about my thoughts around Edinburgh Fringe without saying that I think a lot more can be done to make this great festival truly accessible; artist costs are sky high, as are audience costs, on top of that, a large number of performance spaces aren’t wheelchair accessible (or generally accessible). We can do better, and everybody needs to be part of that, it’s not just down to the individual venues. I am trying to make my show as accessible as possible, offering a captioned performance and touch tours, but even that doesn’t feel like enough. The issues are bigger than any individual though, I hope some structural change happens going forward.

Some of the best shows I have ever seen have been at Edinburgh, it feels like an honour to be part of that this year.

Why is this an important story to tell?

This show has been written to resonate in some way with everybody. It’s got universal themes, while also being comedic and entertaining throughout, There isn’t enough work that explores bisexuality. For a lot of audience members, this has been the only bi-specific theatre show they’ve seen. With this in mind it feels really important to share the work and increase bi representation in theatre. The themes of mental health, while increasing in representation, is still lacking too.

Do you tend to take inspiration from events happening in the world around you in terms of your work? Do you think artists have a responsibility to respond to what's happening? How do you feel about the current arts landscape in your country and your part in it? Does it excite you and inspire you to keep pushing the boat out?

As I said earlier, there isn’t enough bi theatre around at the moment, this is also the case for trans stories, and many other LGBTQ+ themes. It’s artist’s jobs to keep making authentic work that explores these stories, and it’s the job of producers and venues to make sure that work is programmed and seen by people!

It’s hard to make work that doesn’t respond to current world events, as we are all naturally influenced by them. I think it’s important to lean into that, and investigate where certain thoughts or feelings come from. People are still growing up not feeling like they can talk about their sexuality, mental health or gender identity. I truly believe highlighting those issues through art is crucial in changing our society. If we connect with audiences going through those issues, they may feel less alone, while some audiences watch, having previously never realised what some people are going through, and now have more understanding. Both feel really important in helping our society feel safer and more of a positive environment.