An interview with Goldbaby – the toast of the Hollywood Fringe Festival this year, earning them an encore award no less!
Goldbaby is a dynamic group of performers, and this comedy troop is coming off a 13-month, sold-out run at The Pack Theatre and an equally sold-out run in the San Fransisco SketchFest. So, I guess they must be pretty good then!
Good sketch comedy is profoundly brutal to create, and harder yet to perform well. However, this particular group of amazing comedic actors has the magic in them. Their Hollywood Fringe Festival run was amazingly well received and we are very excited that they have one more performance available for online viewing on September 24 at 7pm. Book your tickets, make sure you arrive 15 minutes early for the show and buckle up…it’s going to be a quite a ride!
We had a few questions for these spectacular folks. So, we asked them!
How long have you been performing this show and how was it created?
This is the very first time that this particular show will be performed! Goldbaby has been together since 2018 performing brand new shows every month at the Pack Theater. Writing and rehearsing new material every four weeks has been an amazing way to help us feel fresh as comedians and to keep audiences coming back again and again.
Tell us about the rest of the cast and how you got together?
Goldbaby is a house team at The Pack Theater. Each of us submitted a writing packet for consideration and then had an in-person audition. The theater then placed people together to form teams based on comedic sensibility and who they thought would work well together. We’ve always said that we feel wildly lucky that the powers that be recognized that we would be a good fit with each other! From our very first meeting we were so thankful that we were given such amazing, talented teammates.
This seems like perfect Fringe material, have you performed this anywhere else?
Goldbaby has been performing sketch comedy monthly at The Pack Theater and we’ve also had an amazing run at San Francisco SketchFest. Fringe will be our very first time doing this particular show!
What advice would you give anyone thinking of producing their own show?
Our advice would be to find teammates who you genuinely enjoy working with. Whether it’s your creative team, cast mates or producing partner- working with someone who you respect and trust will make the entire process more rewarding.
Has this show changed you? Or how could it change us?
This show is Goldbaby’s first time performing since March of 2020. We wanted to create a show that gave people a chance to let their brains stop working overtime and enjoy the silly ride we’re going to take them on. It’s incredibly important for artistic work to reflect the current time and be topical but we think it can be equally as important to use art as a means to escape. We know that this show has already done that for us and we hope that it gives our audiences a chance to join us on the vacation.
We all need a laugh right now! Has performing, or planning this helped you through the last 18 months?
Absolutely! Goldbaby has had a rehearsal every Monday night since 2018. Even though we didn’t have a particular show to plan for during most of 2020, being able to zoom with each other on Monday nights gave us a sense of community and camaraderie that we desperately needed as we sat alone in our rooms. Then when we were asked if we were ready to do a Fringe show, it was a resounding yes from the entire team. We’ve become a sort of loud, dysfunctional family and having each other to lean on and laugh with over the last year and a half has meant everything.
What:
“Goldbaby” encore Hollywood Fringe Festival performance
Starring: Jed Alcantara; Lauren Burwell; Emily Champlin; Nick Coluzzi; Brian Fitzgerald; Tatiana Krokar; Eli Magers; Matt Park; Kelsey Risher; Billy Ritter; Jim Rowley; Kyna Wise.
Directed by: Joe Wagner
Produced by: Fringe Management, LLC
When:
Friday, September 24 at 7PM
Running Time: 45 minutes – Ages 16+
Where:
From anywhere on the planet. It’s online! But arrive 15 minutes early.
Tickets:
https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/6920?tab=tickets
Socials:
Twitter: @goldbabysketch
Instagram: @goldbabysketch
Facebook: www.facebook.com/goldbabysketch