Q&A: EDINBURGH 2024: Alexander Richmond on SNAKE BOY TAKES MANHATTAN

BWW caught up with Alexander Richmond on bringing Snake Boy Takes Manhattan to the 2024 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

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

I grew up in a small suburb in South West Sydney and attended a proto-military school that sat on the bottom of the State's scholarly performance list. It did not have a Drama Department. My introduction to comedy came through my Dad, who would sit me down to watch everything he grew up watching, from M*A*S*H to Monty Python; from Whose Line Is It Anyway? to Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em. He tried to introduce me to a new TV show or movie almost every single night. That gave me the first taste and then I started looking further afield into more modern comedy television. It wasn't until I got to university that I really started performing comedy regularly through the societies there.   

For those unfamiliar with the show, can you tell us a bit about the saga of Snake Boy?

Snake Boy was abandoned as a child in the harsh deserts of the Australian Outback but was discovered by a family of red-bellied black snakes who raised him as one of their own. He has subsequently lived there for the last thirty years, learning all there is to know about being a snake. In the previous show, he successfully learned how to walk and talk and eventually, even to love. 

What is it like to be returning to the character of Snake Boy?

I've honestly never really left him! I did Snake Boy shows all the way up until July last year before I finally decided to start working on a new show with the character. Even in that six-month break, I continued to do Snake Boy at various line-up nights and even as a part of the show I did at the Edinburgh Fringe last year, One Man 12 Angry Men.. So I think the main feeling about returning to Snake Boy is less about familiarity and more about finding ways to bring the character into new situations and keeping it feeling fresh for myself. 

What was the creative process like for Snake Boy Takes Manhattan? 

I started off with the desire to do a completely new show with Snake Boy - to do a show with the character that was no longer relying on any of the jokes or set-ups from the previous hour I had done. I had a funny idea in my head of having Snake Boy head to New York because it's a common trope for sequels to try and go BIGGER, sending the character into a higher stakes scenario, and especially when they're a George of the Jungle or a Babe, they're headed to the big city. After that, I just tried to come up with different ideas based on pop culture tropes related to these “coming-of-age” stories. Sometimes I would try these new ideas out at variety nights but more often than not I was rehearsing these ideas in my head, unable to give them a go in person. I never really get a chance to run the show until I'm in front of an audience, which is exhilarating and probably, ultimately, quite stupid. 

How do you balance your performance with audience interaction in a way that everyone feels comfortable?

I think there are two main techniques that allow a performer to create an un-intimidating environment that encourages audience interaction. The first is about constructing the right atmosphere. When an audience member first comes into a theatre space, they are conditioned to treat the divide between the stage and the chairs as concrete. I endeavour to make the space feel less like a formal theatre and more like a sleepover, or rather, a hang-out. I come into the audience’s space, gently. I invite them into mine, again, gently. As a performer, it’s all about rewarding the right interaction and reprimanding the wrong. There usually is not any “wrong” interaction, but in some instances, you have to take a hard stance to ensure you can move through your planned material. In these instances, recriminations should still be gentle. It shouldn’t feel like a “stop” but rather a “not right now.” 

The second technique is one that I think applies to a lot of clowning and comedy - that I, the performer, am the fool, and the one who is the butt of the joke. Audience members fear the interaction because of the power imbalance and because they are afraid of being humiliated by the performer, who controls the space. By making the audience feel like they have not completely relinquished control and that ultimately, they have equal power and influence as me, the performer, they feel safe to get involved. 

What is it like bringing Snake Boy Takes Manhattan up to the Edinburgh Fringe from Snake Boy’s original home of Adelaide, Australia?

I am originally from Sydney, and Snake Boy is canonically from the Outback. The character debuted in Adelaide at the Fringe Festival about five years ago and this new show debuted there earlier this year. It was nice to return to my roots, so to speak, and although I am yet to have much of a following, it was nice to see several people who had seen the first show return. In regards to taking the show to Edinburgh Fringe - I have been lucky this year to receive funding through the Keep it Fringe fun. However, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, as fun as it is to be a part of, is very emotionally draining. Performing your heart out several days in a row is exceptionally fun, however, when you’re at the start of your career and don’t have much money to throw around, it does feel like you are a particularly small fish in a large pond. I have performed at the festival the last two years but was unable to get the attention of any media outlets to feature in their articles, interviews or even just to receive a review. You don’t want to spend too much of your time comparing yourself to others, but it feels hard when the only interview you can get is one that you had to pay the publication for. 

What do you hope audiences take away from Snake Boy Takes Manhattan?

To be kind.  

How would you describe Snake Boy Takes Manhattan in one word?

Joyous.

Snake Boy Takes Manhattan runs from 15 to 25 August at Hoots @ Potterrow - Wee Yurt at the 2024 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

 

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