The Buzz Intro Interview

Madi White - Writer/Performer/Producer

This show is for anyone who needs a release and is looking for a good laugh! It’s for the girlies who love “The Rise and Fall of the Midwest Princess.” If you enjoy sapphic love stories, believe in keeping reproductive rights legal and safe, or have experience with burning familial bridges, then this show is for you.

I love fringe festivals because they often showcase art at its finest—experimental, abstract, and still finding its footing. I appreciate original work and believe that the best way to workshop ideas is in front of an audience. Fringe festivals are the perfect place to play and see if your daydreams resonate with people.

The initial inspiration came from a discussion at a solo show workshop at Celebration Barn Theatre. We were discussing what names we were almost given. I was almost named, Willow, Creedence, or Free. I had planned on writing a completely different show at the workshop, but after that talk it got me thinking about alternative lives and the perceptions people have of my home state, Kansas.

I started writing about a girl named Free who is a vibrantly overexposed, larger-than-life stereotype of what a ‘Kansan’ is. She gave me the permission to say a lot of things that had been weighing on my heart.: such as discovering and suppressing sexuality, opening talking about reproductive rights in a conservative state, and the soul-crushing fear of being abandoned by the people you love for being yourself. All of that to say, it’s a comedy! It’s been a fun experimentation on how to find the joy and the release comedy provides after admitting hard truths. Exploring the play space between character and reality has made this show equal parts catharsis and entertainment, even for me as the writer and performer.