It is August which only means one thing – it is Camden Fringe time! Over the next few weeks we are chatting to acts that are performing at the festival and finding all about their show and what they would call this years iconic Camden Fringe Pigeon! Today we speak to Farrah Alice Black about the show Rambunctious Scallywag

Date: 12th & 13th August
Time: 21:00
Price: £10 Concession: £5
Location: 2Northdown
Ticket Link:  https://camdenfringe.com/events/rambunctious-scallywag/

Hello! Tell us about Rambunctious Scallywag  ? 

Rambunctious Scallywag  is my first Fringe show, it debuted at Brighton Fringe this year and I’m now transferring it to Camden Fringe and hopefully beyond. It started from applying for the Pebble Trust Young Persons Bursary on a whim and winning it a bit by accident, but at least with a clear idea of the message and story of the show.

How did you come up with the name of your show that your taking to the Camden fringe?

It was already my Instagram handle! I think the Instagram name came from a conversation I had with a friend whilst sharing a very cheap bottle of Co-op wine on Brighton beach and talking about our respective quarter-life crisis’. My friend remarked that as much as they wanted to grow up and be healthier and become a more responsible adult, it’s hard to let go of wanting to be a rambunctious little scallywag sometimes. And that really stayed with me, so I stole it.

Tell us a little bit about your style of show?

Joyous rambly storytelling, with zero audience participation because I want us to both enjoy ourselves.

What will your set be about?

It’s about how finding silliness and the humour when life completely f**ks you sideways is an act of resilience, and the importance of being a rambunctious scallywag to get you through hard times. My mum says it’s about being 25.

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

I’m excited to see a lot, this is actually my absolute first Camden Fringe- first time performing, first time watching! I’m hoping to see “Dad, Playboy & Me… Not Your Average Slideshow” Because I’d hoped to see them at Brighton Fringe this year and just missed the chance. I’m also really hoping to see Kate-Lois Elliot’s Gentrif*cked because it seems exactly my cup of tea.

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

 I’ve never been to Camden Fringe before!

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

Seek out others who are doing similar shows, especially at similar venues, as early as possible so you can support each other. I haven’t done this enough and now it’s getting very close to the shows I’m struggling to find the time to properly meet likeminded people, so I’d definitely recommend making the most of that opportunity as soon as you can

What is the best thing about performing at the Camden fringe?

I’m not sure yet because I haven’t started my run and this is my first time here. But what I am most excited about is every Fringe festival has it’s own unique atmosphere and and it’s own quirks unique to it’s city/area, so I’m excited to see how Camden differs from other fringe festivals like Brighton or Edinburgh

London can be an expensive place to perform in – what key advice would you give to performers that is a sort of life hack?

I really appreciate venues that function on a box office split deal rather that a hire cost. Of course there are pro’s and cons to either and some variety in between, but especially where you’re a wide-eyed baby performer like me, the ability to secure a venue and know that if the absolute happens and you have an empty house… you’re not going to loose your actual house, y’know? Sure, I want to sell out shows but it’s nice to know that if I don’t I can still afford to eat.

What are your three favourite things about Camden?

1) I’m about to move in with my partner here, so that’s fun.

2) Wide variety of areas within one borough, within the vastly varied and mis-matched London

3) I once as a teenager was walking down Primrose hill with a ukulele on my back and I tripped over thin area and flew halfway across London, ukulele flung off and started making it’s way to Kent, and then landed very dramatically on my face. That was nearly 10 years ago and I can’t not think about it anytime anyone so much as mentions Primrose Hill, and yet it’s probably my favourite place in London. That view more than makes up for getting chinned by gravity, 10/10 on TripAdvisor.

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

I have never once formed a sentence concise enough to be considered a one-liner. Source: see above.

Who would be your ultimate dream audience member?

If any comedians I admired came to see me I would one hundred percent rather not know until after so I can puke and cry off-stage, preferably. I like when my mum comes to see me, so maybe my mum.

The iconic image of the Camden Fringe is the Pigeon – if you could call this years pigeon a name to represent its style what would it be and why?

Pegion, leader of the Camden Fringe Legion

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

My Instagram handle is- and you’re not gonna believe this- @rambunctiousscallywag.

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

1) Death

2) Is 

3) Inevitable