It is the last feature of the year so we are finishing off 2023 with a bang before we go on and celebrate the festive season and the end of the year in December. This month we speak to writer-performer and improviser Laurie Stevens. This year she has had a busy one performing the show Sticky Floors – A wild mashup of character comedy, clown, drag and live music exploring teenage anger. Today we get to know Laurie a little bit better…

Hello Laurie! How are you? How was 2023 for you? 

I’m good! 2023 has been great but it’s gone by fast! 

For people who do not know, tell us a little bit about yourself? 

I’m a writer-performer from London with a background in longform improv. At the moment I’m  channelling this into a clown/character/comedy/theatre show about a teenage boy who dreams of  being a rock star. 

What is your favourite thing about being on stage? 

That it’s basically grown-up playtime. 

You are part of many improv teams! Tell us a bit about them all! 

I started on the Monkey Toast Harold team Whose Army. I was the youngest, least experienced, and  just so happy to be there. It was brilliant. I then trained at the FA and played with their house team  The Present Company, where we got to play with a bunch of different formats. During the pandemic,  I was part of Danny Dorito, an international team rehearsing and playing online, coached by the  legend that is Will Hines. The team I’ve been on the longest, though, is Geraldyne. In our show,  Improv from Music, we invite a guest musician to play, and we perform scenes based on their songs  and interviews. We’ve done London residencies, a couple of Fringe runs, and our annual Christmas  dinner is one of the highlights of my year. 

What is your favourite style of improv to perform and why? 

I’ve only really trained in Chicago-style longform. Right now, though, I’m really enjoying that I’ve got  a written show with space for improv, because it means I can turn my writer brain off and respond  more impulsively than I might do if I had one eye on the structure of the show. 

You also are trained in clowning – that sounds really fun! 

It’s mad but I’d strongly recommend it. 

What have been the highlights of learning it? 

It’s really lessened my fear of failure. And watching other students perform – when clown is good, it’s  incredible. 

If people want to follow you on social media, where should they go? 

@daviddoesdrums on Insta 

And keep your eyes peeled for upcoming TikTok content @lauriehehehe