INTERVIEW | 'THE GREATEST HITS OF LILY AND JOHN', EDINBURGH FESTIVAL FRINGE

The countdown to the world's biggest arts festival Edinburgh Festival Fringe is on and arrives next month for its 75th anniversary. Between 5 - 29 August you can enjoy a diverse selection of work from across the UK in Scotland's capital city. 

Ahead of the festival, I have fantastic interviews coming up from some of the acts who will be heading there to showcase their work.

Today's interview comes from Tritone Theatre about their debut show, The Greatest Hits of Lily and John. The show is a folk-inspired, comedic, gig theatre show about mental health struggles and suicide which is heading to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this summer. 

So to begin with, tell us a little bit about Tritone Theatre… What are your main influences in the work you create?  

We formed whilst training together at the Oxford School of Drama in 2020. We blend folk music with modern theatre. We aim to tell authentic stories about people struggling to be themselves in our ever more uncertain world, and through music, humour, and movement we aim to embrace the absurdity of the human experience.

What does it feel like to be bringing The Greatest Hits of Lily and John to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this summer?  

It feels amazing but also quite surreal! To go from writing something in the seclusion of the first lockdown to now, having a full-length run at Ed Fringe, is mind boggling. A year ago we’d never have thought we’d be here, yet here we are! 

The Greatest Hits of Lily and John is a debut show - how long has it taken you to develop this work? 

We’ve been writing the show for about a year and a half now, but to be honest it seems to be an ever-ongoing process. I don’t think there will ever be a definitive version of the show. Our feelings towards the theme of mental health are constantly changing, so it’s only right that the show should change with us. 

You are focusing on mental health and suicide in this show. What particularly drew you into using these themes in your work? How did you undertake the research? 

It sounds like a cliché, but we’re genuinely interested in writing in the most truthful way possible and sharing the most private/intimate moments of our lives. Discussion around mental health and suicide come out organically with that mind-vomit writing style! The show is literally littered with our combined greatest (and worst) hits. We also had some amazing advice from our partnered charity The Listening Place. The Listening Place offers free, confidential and ongoing face-to-face listening, by appointment, to people who feel that life is no longer worth living. It was really important to us that we were dealing with the subject matter sensitively, and The Listening Place provided us with some invaluable insight.

You have used influences of folk, comedic, gig theatre styles in this piece. How have you managed to combine them into this show? 

I don’t think we could have written it in any other way, it just came out like that. Folk music is great for storytelling in general, and in terms of comedy, I think we both just chronically take the piss out of each other and the show reflects that very well (we think). 

Has it been difficult to develop a story about mental health and suicide? Do you think it is an important subject matter that needs portraying in theatre more in order to create more conversation? 

The conversations are definitely there: lots of people create amazing work around these topics, but often the conversation it opens up is one of attempting to solve/fix mental health problems.

We felt that there was a need for less simplistic and less prescriptive narratives around mental health/suicide - we try to never give easy fix answers to any of the problems the characters have, because they don’t exist. We just wanted to portray the issues as honestly and unapologetically as possible. 

Which part of this show do you feel will resonate and stick with audiences the most?  

Hopefully the music! We have the most fun with the music aspect of the show - so hopefully that’s contagious. I think we also hope that the characters are very real, and that people can recognise elements of themselves or of their loved ones within Lily and John.  

Has any of this show surprised you during its development?

The surprises usually come from the audience and what they respond to - sometimes a line we couldn’t stop cracking up over gets absolute radio silence, and then the most harrowing and tense moments are received with chuckles.

Why is this festival and your play important for people to see and support during August?

It’s been said before, but we’ll say it again... it’s been a pretty crap couple of years for planet earth... personally, we couldn’t think of a better way to re-engage with life than visiting Ed Fringe this year and just celebrating being there amongst so much great art. 

Besides your show, are there any that you’d recommend that people go and watch during the festival?

Cassie and the Lights at Big Belly, Underbelly Cowgate. A new play based on real-life events and interviews with children in care. Also with live music! Created and directed by our brilliant director Alex Howarth! 4-28th August, 12:30pm. 

What do you hope for in the future with The Greatest Hits of Lily and John after the fringe?

Ideally after the fringe we receive a call from Stephen Spielberg, saying wants to turn The Greatest Hits of Lily & John into a 5 hour epic, and that Hugh Jackman and Natalie Portman have been cast to play us. So not much really. 

Where can people come and see you during the festival?

We’re at The Pleasance Courtyard, Upstairs at 16:30 daily from 3-28th August (not 18th). Come and see us!