Writer Ellora Kamineni answers questions about Coconut, as posed by her cast and crew.
1. What is 'Coconut' about?
On the surface it's a comedy about a brown girl who's trying to find her way through early adulthood and is a little bit selfish and a little bit lost. Once you really get into the play, it's so much more than that. 'Coconut' explores relationships and the expectations that we hold for ourselves and the people around us. It explores how our self-worth defines our actions and how our appearance shapes our day-to-day lives. It also has a litany of penis jokes and a whole section dedicated to Tinder, so it's not nearly as high-brow as I'm making it sound.
2. How’s it been putting together your first Ed fringe show?
So. Much. Admin. I'd never produced anything at all before this show, so every step was a massive learning curve for me. Even things like finding rehearsal space and sourcing props were really difficult! I definitely underestimated how much work goes into a Fringe show before doing it myself, and there have been so many tears and so much stress but (just like giving birth, I'm assuming) the final product really does make it all worth it. Seeing your work being performed at such an iconic festival and seeing an audience fall in love with characters and stories you've created is such a wonderful feeling!
3. Any advice for first comers next year?
Say yes to everything. Obviously this comes with the caveat of 'until you need a break to keep your sanity', but I've learnt so much and met so many amazing people by putting myself in slightly anxiety-inducing situations that I never would have back in London!
4. If you could only see 5 more shows at Edinburgh Fringe, what would they be?
God that's hard. The best things I've seen so far have been Clementine and Butchered, both at Underbelly Cowgate, but I haven't gotten around to seeing many shows to be honest! Right so if I could only see 5 more they'd be:
- Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story at Pleasance Dome
- Jingle Street at Gilded Balloon Patter Hoose
- Kathy and Stella Solve a Murder at Udderbelly
- Potty the Plant at Gilded Balloon Patter Hoose
- One Week in Magaluf at theSpace
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