EDINBURGH 2022: Jake Cornell and Marcia Belsky Q&A

BWW catches up with Jake Cornell and Marcia Belsky to chat about bringing Man and Woman to the 2022 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Tell us a bit about 'Man and Woman'.

Man and Woman is a play that we wrote about two absolutely insufferable writers who have written an ill-fated show they falsely believe to be profound & even worse, empowering to women. The show begins with our two main characters: named "Marcia" and "Jacob" welcoming the audience to the premiere of this horrible play. Once the play begins, the tension between the two writers/actors becomes clear and the show slowly dissolves into disaster. We wanted to write a show parodying the heterosexual love stories we've seen play out in theatre time and time again where men yell at women and women apologise for existing and somehow it is seen as "deep."

Why bring it to Edinburgh?
We've been doing the show since October 2021 in New York and then eventually took it to LA as well. Every time we perform it, each new audience and their reactions gives us new ideas and moments to expand on. So, the idea of getting to do 25 shows in a row was really exciting. Also, because the show is parodying theatre tropes, performing it in a theatre festival felt like a really great way to bring it to an audience that will connect with it. There's a surprise guest in the midpoint of every show that is played by a different (surprise) comedian each night. So, having this whole festival full of comedians to cast from is a dream. The show also specifically pokes fun at American themes, American art, and Americana as a whole so, we're really looking forward to seeing how international audiences react compared to the American audiences we've already performed for.

Who would you like to come and see it?
We want everyone to come! Although we do start the show with an announcement not to bring children unless they are "particularly cerebral." The show is specific but very accessible because everyone knows the gendered tropes we're mocking. It's been really fun after each show to talk with different audience members and see what jokes or moments they really connected with. It's so interesting to see how different people interpret the dynamic between the two characters based on their own experiences and backgrounds. The show does also skew queer, as all good things do, so we think queer audiences will connect with it in particular.

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Photo credit: Amir Khan

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