Q&A: EDINBURGH 2024: Ally Ibach on MIDNIGHT COWBOY RADIO

BWW caught up with Ally Ibach on bringing Midnight Cowboy Radio to the 2024 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

How did you first get involved in the world of theatre?
 

My godmother (who is famously only thirteen years older than me) has always been my biggest supporter and inspiration! She was a performer and I used to watch her in productions and she would take me to plays - It was my favourite thing to do with my favourite person! These productions included an egregiously bloody local high school production of Julius Caesar that scarred me for life. Somehow, I still got involved in theatre anyway. From there, I caught “the acting bug” at a community theatre in Delaware and have been performing ever since!

Can you tell us a bit about your show, Midnight Cowboy Radio?

Midnight Cowboy Radio takes place on Labor Day, 2022. It's a political satire that follows a conservative, late-night radio talk show host in Kentucky, hosting her Labor Day Special - giving life advice to local callers on-the-air, while arranging an illegal abortion off-the-air.

What was the creative process like for Midnight Cowboy Radio?

I wrote the original ten-minute sketch version of this show, honestly, in about two hours. I got the idea for it while grocery shopping in Sainsbury's. I grabbed my bananas and ran home to write this play. I performed that ten-minute sketch version throughout the UK. Each time I performed the show, I worked with the live audience to balance the comedic/dramatic elements in this play. When I moved back to the US, I formed a brilliant team of collaborators who all offered ideas to continue to build this story into the play it is today. My director, Patricia Runcie-Rice, led me in several improvisation exercises when I was stuck on parts of “Radio Cowgirl's” story that opened up the world of the play that audiences will see in Edinburgh. 

What is it like to be both the writer and sole performer in a show?

An endless sea of self-criticism! (Kidding . . . mostly!) The best part is that the show feels like my baby. I have been performing and developing Midnight Cowboy Radio for over two years now, so I have this deep passion and love for the story and character. The show has grown with me as the world, political climate and I personally develop and change. It also leads to silly ironies, like a joke my director (Patricia Runcie-Rice) often makes in rehearsal, when I miss a line - “Well, the playwright wrote . . .”

The radio-talk-show setting also allows me to feel like I am in a traditional ensemble play through the function of having calls on and off the air. While I am physically alone on stage, there are always characters on the other line! (*Insert line about this being not-your-average-solo-show*)

How do you balance making people laugh while still focusing on serious subjects like reproductive rights?

That is THE QUESTION! When I originally had the idea, it was in the Spring of 2022. I was living in London and consumed with American news of the Supreme Court Opinion leak on overturning Roe v. Wade. I was doom-scrolling and depressed about the state of reproductive rights in the U.S. and felt powerless from where I was. This forced me to question the value of me being in Drama School in the UK while major rights were being stripped away from American citizens. I wrote the play, at first, to make myself laugh in these dark times, and connect with someone (my character, "Radio Cowgirl") who holds beliefs that are not my own. It's been a beautiful joy and creative challenge to bring people together from different backgrounds and have them sit in the audience together to laugh AND empathise with this character and her choices in the play. I don't want to give too much away, but comedy is the vehicle to get to the drama of this play. It's a tightrope that is such a thrill to bring to audiences.

What is it like bringing Midnight Cowboy Radio to the Edinburgh Fringe?

Well, this isn't my first rodeo. Off the record (except it's not, because it's on . . . #brat), I first performed my original ten-minute version back in 2022 through the PBH Free Fringe (thanks, y'all). I went into my first Fringe completely blind. For example, I made “flyers” that were the size of business cards (metric system mistake), I barely marketed it and practically begged my five audience members a night to see my show . . . Most were employees who worked at the venue, who I convinced to take a ten-minute break. (If any of you are reading this, pints are on me.)

In all seriousness, it is such a beautiful thing to be back at the Fringe with the support of the venue (The Space UK) and my brilliant creative team (Lauren Dietzel, Kris Carpenter, Gabrielle Rodríguez, Eulàlia Comas, C.M. Jenkins, Patricia Runcie-Rice and Brian McManimon) after the play has been performed for audiences all over the US and UK. It is a full-circle moment to bring it back to a place I love so much. 

A question I constantly ask myself is, "Is this play still relevant?". With the upcoming U.S. Presidential Election, it feels more relevant than ever. Edinburgh, we are ready for YOU.

What do you hope audiences take away from Midnight Cowboy Radio?

I hope anyone who sees the play can key into how complicated and ingrained our culture, politics and religion can be in all the life choices we make. Nothing is simple. I hope they can see the humanity in this character and why she acts in the way she does. I hope they leave discussing reproductive rights and the impact access (and lack thereof) has in our day-to-day lives. 

Also, I hope they take away our beautiful dramaturgical packets, created by my brilliant dramaturg, Eulàlia Comas.

How would you describe Midnight Cowboy Radio in one word?

Chaotic!

Midnight Cowboy Radio runs from 12 to 17 August at theSpace @ Surgeons’ Hall at the 2024 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

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