This week the Vault Festival in London kicked off and runs all the way through until the 19th March 2023. Over the next month, we have interviews with acts that are performing at the event. Today we find out all about the comedian Kate-Lois Elliott about the show Gentrif*cked? (Work In Progress)

Gentrif*cked? (Work In Progress)

Dates: 17th-18th February
Time: 21:10, 20:40
Venue: Crypt
Tickets: https://vaultfestival.com/events/gentrifcked-work-in-progress/

Hello! Tell us about Gentrf*cked?  

It’s a show about finding your purpose when everything around you feels like it’s  descending into chaos. It’s about different generations and how we all end up asking the  same questions. It’s about wanting the simple things VS wanting to be Beyoncé (there’s  only one Beyoncé!). And it’s about the extreme measures people will go through to feel like  they belong. 

How did you come up with the name of your show that you’re taking to the Vault? 

Gentrif*cked is a word I use to describe somewhere in London that has been gentrified too  quickly – it used to be scary, then it became briefly fancy and now it’s Camden.  

The show is about how my generation is a bit screwed by how fast everything is changing.  We think we know what to aim for in life and then suddenly that thing doesn’t exist  anymore. Gentrif*cked as a title seemed to work for this: you want to live in Angel but you  can’t afford it, so you’re like, ‘Hey, let’s buy in Walthamstow, everyone’s buying in  Walthamstow.’ So you save and save and when you finally get there, all you can afford is  shared ownership of a studio flat in Dartford.  

The show isn’t about affordable housing but it felt like a good parallel.

Tell us a little bit about your style of show? 

I come from a theatre background so I do a lot of storytelling. I recently got called a ‘pound  shop Katherine Ryan’ by a fellow comedian, which I’ll take (because I love her and I am  cheap) but I think I’m much weirder than she is and a lot more self-deprecating. 

What will your set be about? 

It will be about finding purpose in your 30s, which also applies to being in your 20s.  Actually – according to an older lady in Faversham- it applies to people who grew up in the  1960s, 70s and 80s as well, because, back then, everything felt exactly the same for  people in their 30s…  

I also talk about growing up in rural England, how my mum’s family escaped a Christian  cult when she was a teenager, and the time I had an existential crisis whilst being  terrorised by a dachshund. So, you know, something for everyone. 

What other acts are you looking forward to seeing at the festival?

The comedy programme is next-level this year, so there really are too many to mention.  

If I could, I would go and see all of these shows: Tadiwa Mahlunge, Olga Koch, Su Mi,  Helen Bauer, Sarah Keyworth, Juliet Cowan, Katie Prichard, Lulu Popplewell, Ashish Suri,  Raj Poojara, Sarah Roberts, Ali Woods, Ben Pope, Tatty Macleod, Louisa Keight, Aalex  Mandel-Dallal and Mickey Overman.…but I am only one person. 

Have you done the Vault Festival before? What have been some of your favourite  shows to date and why? 

I was in a theatre show at VAULT Festival many, many years ago with a physical theatre  company called Artful Badger. We dressed up like scary wolf people and danced around. It  was a riot. 

What advice would you give to others who want to perform at Vault next year? 

Apply! I work best when I have a deadline and there’s nothing more deadline-y than an  actual show to prepare for. So apply. There’s plenty of time to perfect the show in the run up to it. 

What is the best thing about performing at the Vault Festival? 

I love the energy in the bar afterwards. It’s such an unusual venue and feels like a proper  festival because it’s all confined to this huge underground space. It’s like Edinburgh but  condensed. 

What are your three favourite things about London? 

I Lived in London for 12 years and have just moved a bit further out to a town near  Brighton. What I miss the most about London is the coffee, petting dogs on the tube and  the fact that I can order takeaway at 3am. 

Favourite one liner you have done in a show and why? 

I think you really need to hear the one-liners out loud, but here’s a Tweet I did recently  when I was trying to move house… 

Who would be your ultimate dream audience member? 

Someone who is into the story as well as the jokes. Someone with a really loud laugh.  Someone who will share their Prosecco with me. 

If people want to find out more about you where can they follow you on social  media? 

@kateloiselliott for pretty much everything.

And Finally in three words – Why should people come and see the show?  

Free sweets available.