Jake Mace
We’re counting down to Prague Fringe by shining a light on a number of shows headed to the festival next week. Lou Laurence is arriving in Prague from Canada to invite us on a music-comedy date which she says is guaranteed to be great. We’re being promised a deep-jazzy-soulful voice, hilarious stories, improvised songs, and quick wit. We caught up with Lou for a pixelated pint to find out more about the show.
Catch Love, Sharks & Frenching: a hot date with Lou Laurence at various times between May 27th-29th at Malostranská beseda – Klub (60mins). Tickets are available through the Prague Fringe Online Box Office.
Jake: Hi Lou! Let’s start by talking about your show – Love Sharks and Frenching. Tell us what inspired that intriguing title and what the audience can expect.
Lou: Hey Jake! Love, Sharks & Frenching: a hot date with Lou Laurence is the long title of the show and it is actually a pretty good description of what you can expect to see. The show is a date – with me! And the “Love, Sharks & Frenching” are the three things I bring on any hot date. “Love” speaks for itself. “Frenching” in Canada refers to kissing passionately (I’m not sure if it’s the same in Europe, but I intend to find out!) And as for “Sharks”, well, you’ll have to come to the show to understand their role in romance.
The only thing missing from the title is the music: I’m a singer with a very big, deep, jazzy voice, so imagine an evening with a woman with a voice like Amy Winehouse meets Janis Joplin telling you stories, making you laugh, and serenading you with songs that are occasionally made up on the spot.
Jake: The show has already been on quite the journey, being nominated and winning awards in Canada – tell us about your tour so far and how the audience have responded.
Lou: A reviewer in Edmonton I think best summed up the audience response saying, “she’s here to seduce the crowd, and it works.” I have had so much fun taking this show on the road. There are a few songs in the show where I improvise verses, so every audience I met helped create a part of the show they saw. Canada is a very big country with huge distances between festivals, distinct communities, languages, and geographies, so as much as I think every audience got to enjoy getting to know me, I truly enjoyed getting to know them. Each city brought its own vibe and own flavour of romance.
I premiered the show at Victoria Fringe where it won Best Solo Show and Best Music Show and was runner up for Best Show with Improv and then got to take the show to Fringe festivals in Montreal, Regina, Edmonton, and Halifax so I got to travel from one coast of the country to the other singing songs and seducing strangers. In Montreal I was nominated for Best English Comedy and in Halifax I was the first ever recipient of the Best Group Kiss award. Later this summer I will head back to Western Canada to do the show at Vancouver Fringe.
Jake: What are you hoping the audience might take away from the experience, if anything?
Lou: One audience member said to me, “this show is velvet. It felt so nice,” and I think that was a great summary of the show. It’s intimate and low-stakes. Dating makes us silly, nervous, excited, sexy, stupid, and curious. In this show, I want people to sit in a room full of strangers and feel cozy, find some levity, laugh, be serenaded, and maybe even sing along a little bit.
When I’m promoting the show, I like to say, “Imagine going on a first date that was guaranteed to be great.” After performances, I find audience members seem really comfortable coming up to me to chat and to tell me their favourite parts and I think it’s in part because the show feels very inviting and warm. Like a first date where you just get to enjoy the gentle excitement of human connection while someone else does all the work.
Jake: Tell us about how the show has ended up being performed at Prague Fringe, and what you’re most excited for about the festival.
Lou: This will be my first time in Prague; I have no chill and I am excited about everything. I wanted to take this show out of Canada and into the world and Prague Fringe seemed like an absolute dream opportunity. I love that the festival brings people from around the world to share in this city of arts and culture. I can’t wait to meet the other performers and to see their shows. I’m also really honoured to be a guest on the Bombay Comedy Nights show on May 27 for the late night folks.
Jake: Given the themes of Binge Fringe, if your show was a beverage of any kind (alcoholic, non-alcoholic – be as creative as you like!), what would it be and why?
Lou: Maple Whisky, because no one ever asked for it to be made, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how delicious you find it.
A reminder – you can catch Love, Sharks & Frenching: a hot date with Lou Laurence at various times between May 27th-29th at Malostranská beseda – Klub (60mins). Tickets are available through the Prague Fringe Online Box Office.
Image Credit: Joseph Ste-Marie
Freddie Haberfellner
