My Festival: Chris Grace

The American actor and comedian tells us about his potentially world-changing new tribute to Scarlett Johansson.

There are thousands of shows in Edinburgh this month. Please explain why we should come and see yours.

My show is the only tribute to Scarlett Johansson in the festival that also solves racism… most nights, as per my legal team, racism may not be solved every night of the month and audience members are not allowed compensation in the event that prejudice and systemic bias continue beyond the running time of my show.

What will we learn from your show that we didn’t know before?

That boiling down complex situations to soundbite quick fixes and tidy conclusions doesn't get us any closer to actually making the world better. Also you'll learn what I look like in a nearly-nude leotard.

Who or what was the biggest inspiration for your show?

Clearly a lot of recent meta theatrical work has influenced me but it wasn't clear to me until after the show was created. I was definitely influenced by Nathan Fielder's The Rehearsal, and Everything Everywhere All At Once, and, of course, the MCU.

What’s the best review you’ve ever had, and the worst?

Chris Grace: As Scarlett Johansson (Photo Copyright CX Xie)

The best was when the NY Times called me "hilarious". The worst was when a reviewer said I wasn't sexy enough to be the lead of 50 Shades! The Musical. And it was a Chinese-American reviewer that wrote that about me. Internalised racism is the most insidious, because it achieves the result of oppression without the oppressors having to get their hands dirty.

Who or what are you most excited about seeing this year?

Pattie Harrison, Tim Murray, Mitch Benn, Mario the Maker, Jonny & the Baptists, and every single thing in the Circus Hub!

Who do you most like spending time with in Edinburgh?

My husband, who is also my director! And of course all my Baby Wants Candy cast and crew! This year I have the added bonus of my Los Angeles stand-up friends from Laughing Stock. Plenty of friendly faces to help each other get through the ups and downs of the festival!

What are the best and worst things that have happened to you at a festival?

It's a tough call for best, but I'll pick our first night after we had put two new songs into Thrones! The Musical Parody, our Lannister trap rap song Stabbin' and Hodor's solo Hold the Door. The response from the audience was overwhelmingly positive and we had really levelled up the quality of the show. And then it ran for several more years. The worst thing to happen, this probably speaks to my privileged existence, but even the worst thing, performing a play for two people in a 288 seat venue, doesn't seem that bad.

Thanks for the interview! We’d like to buy you a drink. Where are we going and what are we drinking?

We're going to Assembly Club Bar and we are drinking delicious, sweet, crisp, unexpectedly alcoholic ciders. Then we're getting in a time machine and going back to when New Town Bar was still open for late night dancing with bears.

Chris Grace: As Scarlett Johansson, 1.40pm; Shamilton, 5.20pm; Baby Wants Candy, 9.05pm, all at Assembly George Square until August 27 and August 28.