EDINBURGH 2016: BWW Q&A - Carey Marx

BroadwayWorld speaks to Carey Marx about his 2016 Edinburgh Fringe show Hero Of The People.

Tell us a bit about The Hero Of The People

It started as a song my wife and I would sing when entering a room to announce ourselves to each other. It's such a pompous claim that I thought it would be a good title for a show that's really about humility and unimportance.

What inspired the show?

I turned 50 this year. Despite having 49 years to expect that to happen I was unprepared. So, this is an hour of meandering thoughts around the realities of middle age.

This is your 11th solo show at the Fringe - do you think you know what to expect from the festival?

Finally, yes. It has taken many years to achieve that knowledge. What I now expect is very little from the Fringe but a lot from myself. I don't go to the festival to change the world or become famous, just to do a great show and increase my skills as a performer. My favourite thing about the festival is to sit with a coffee on a street corner and collect up passing friends in the business. It's an amazing social, and a fantastic time and place to be an artist.

Do you have any advice to anyone making their Fringe debut?

Invest your heart, soul and pride in the show you're putting on. Don't expect that investment to pay off immediately. If it does and you become the buzz of the fringe, that's great, but mostly it will pay off in the long run. If you can enjoy your show, and not expect any prizes for it, you can enjoy the festival wholeheartedly.

Who would you recommend comes to see The Hero Of The People?

I have given up second-guessing the demographic that would enjoy my comedy. I performed once in a marquee full of very elderly people who I thought would want something tame. They were the darkest, most adventurous audience I'd known. I performed a show I wrote about a heart attack I had at a university and looked out over all the young faces that could not know what I was talking about, but they were really into it. Largely, though, I think this show is aimed at those around Generation X who are now middle age. But there will be jokes, lots of jokes, and they are equally enjoyable at any age.

Timings and ticket information for Hero Of The People are available on the edfringe website.