Shay Mace
On a beach somewhere in Australia, Shayna, a wealthy five-time divorcee and Beverley, a mother of twelve boys, settle into deckchairs beneath the blazing sun, chain-smoking and chatting endlessly as paradise slowly collapses around them. Birds fall from the sky. Skin melts. Time stretches into infinity. This is the setting of Alex Hines and Sarah Stafford’s ‘sweat-soaked’ absurd dark comedy BIRDS, headed to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe next month. We caught up with the duo for a pixelated pint to find out more about the apocalypse, SPF, denial and paralysis.
You can catch BIRDS at Assembly George Square Studios on August 6-30. Tickets are Available Through the EdFringe Online Box Office.
Shay: Hi Sarah and Alex tell us about BIRDS and why you have decided to bring this to the stage now?
Alex: The best way to describe BIRDS would be Waiting For Godot Meets Ab Fab in the Apolocalypse.
Two women at the beach on deck chairs, chain smoking and chatting while the world literally collapses around them. Its camp, It’s absurd, it’s a sweat soaked delirium that starts as comedy and devolves into body horror.
Sarah: We use comedy to explore the feeling of denial and paralysis in the face of impending doom. It feels like every time we pick up our phones to doom scroll the world is ending but life goes on and we still have to go buy groceries (even if we can’t afford them).
Audiences are really connecting with that feeling and they also connect with the humour and the joy that still exists in the middle of all that uncertainty.
Alex: At its heart, BIRDS is about a life-changing friendship at the end of the world, and about the very human instinct to keep talking, laughing and connecting with each other, even when everything around us feels like it’s falling apart.
Shay: How has the creative process been of putting the show together? Give us an idea of the journey you’ve been on with it so far.
Sarah: We were incredibly lucky to receive the Melbourne Fringe Cash to Create grant to develop the first version of BIRDS, but it also meant we had a really tight turnaround. From memory, we had about four months to go from an idea to a full production.
We had the initial concept and some strong images we knew we wanted to explore, but it was the first time the two of us created a show like this together. Usually one of us is performing while the other directs, but this time we were both performing, writing and making creative decisions together.
Alex: To make things even more interesting, we live in different states, so a huge amount of the show was created over Zoom, with short bursts of intensive rehearsals whenever we could get into the same room. Theatre isn’t really designed to be made over video calls, so it was definitely a challenge..I don’t think either of us would describe it as an easy birth.
Sarah: Looking back on the process, the words “post-traumatic stress” come to mind. There were definitely moments where we wondered what we’d gotten ourselves into. But I think going through that process together is part of what makes the show what it is. We really pushed each other creatively, and because we’d worked so hard to earn every moment, we’re incredibly proud of what came out the other side. The fact that it’s now had sold-out seasons, won Best Comedy at Melbourne Fringe, and is heading to Edinburgh makes all of those difficult Zoom rehearsals feel very worth it.
Shay: What will be the first thing the audience sees, feels, and hears as they enter the space?
Alex: Sarah always does nervous farts and they are feral, so hopefully that doesn’t wipe them all out preshow.
Sarah: Okay I wanted that to be a surprise… but if they can get through that.. the pre show music is giving tropicana beach holiday. We want you to escape into the world of BIRDS. Take an Australian beach holiday. As the show begins and you hear the static of radio headlines. Heat wave warnings, the state of the world. You get the sense that this may not be an escape, rather a glimpse into an impending doom.
Shay: What are you hoping the audience might take away from the experience, if anything?
Alex: We want audiences to sink deeply into the heatstroke psyche of these two women. You’re laughing your ass off one minute and then suddenly you’re thinking, “Why do I feel so uncomfortable?” We love that the show keeps pulling the rug out from under people.
Underneath all of that, BIRDS is really asking how we cope with catastrophe. Do we avoid it? Do we distract ourselves? Do we keep smiling and pretend everything’s fine? They’re very human responses. We hope audiences leave recognising a little bit of themselves in these women.
Sarah: The play explores our collective helplessness, but it also reminds us that even in the middle of all that uncertainty, there’s still humour, connection and friendship. If people leave having laughed really hard, felt a little unsettled, and then had a conversation on the way home, we’d be pretty happy with that.
Shay: What journey has the show been on to find itself at EdFringe 2026?
Sarah: After our very first sold out season at Melbourne Fringe Festival last year, House of Oz got in touch and said they wanted to take BIRDS to Edinburgh Fringe, and we were absolutely beside ourselves. House of Oz does such an incredible job championing Australian artists on the world stage, so to be part of that and to share this very Australian, very weird little show with international audiences feels like a real dream come true.
Alex: It’s honestly been an incredible journey. The show has sold out seasons across Australia, which has completely exceeded anything we imagined when we first started making it.
Sarah: I have no doubt in my mind we will sell out our Edinburgh run so you better get your tickets quick! (that’s a joke but also it’s important to manifest these things)
Shay: With EdFringe now just around the corner, what are you most excited for?
Alex: I recently saw on tik tok that there’s a stream you can put your face in and it will give you eternal youth so I’m really looking forward to drowning myself there.
Sarah: Look, I’m just happy to be in the motherland again… and I’m looking forward to the holiday after- Isle of Skye here I come! Nobody contact me for all of September x
Alex: But in all seriousness we can’t wait to be in this festival. We can’t wait to perform for an international audience and see what they laugh at. We also cannot wait to see as many shows as possible.
Shay: 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?
Alex: BIRDS has got to be a Sex on the Beach. At first it seems like a really good idea. You think you’re about to have the best night of your life… and then you leave red raw with a UTI wondering what the hell just happened.
A reminder, you can catch BIRDS at Assembly George Square Studios on August 6-30. Tickets are Available Through the EdFringe Online Box Office.
