Responder: Hope Lafferty, Performer-Creator & Founder
Name of Company: CrashMat Productions
Name of Show: INHIBITIONIST(!)
“It’s punk theatre, man. As an adult, I’ve spent more time going to see indie music than live theatre. That’s why I really dig fringe festivals. They’re basically South by Southwest for theatre.”
- Why should people see your show?
People should come to see INHIBITIONIST(!) to feel better about themselves. This is a show about childhood and growing up and falling down. I’m struck by how much audience members really relate to the stories told.
When I wrote this, I thought I was the only person that went through this stuff. It’s so personal. And kind of embarrassing. And then after every show, folks come up to me to share their stories with me and how the stories in INHIBITIONIST(!) really resonate with their experience—both growing up and as an adult.
I wrote it for women but it’s the men that seem to get a big kick out of this too. Women come for the inspiration. Men come for the violence. There’s something for everybody.
- What about festivals intrigues you? And why the Atlanta Fringe?
It’s punk theatre, man. As an adult, I’ve spent more time going to see indie music than live theatre. Honestly, going to see a bunch of sweaty boys in smelly bars was really accessible. Especially with somebody on my budget. Theatre—as much as I adore the form—can be very highbrow. And expensive.
That’s why I really dig fringe festivals. They’re basically South by Southwest for theatre. Great emerging artists. Tons of it all at once. With something for everybody.
And I say this because Atlanta—and Georgia overall—has always been on the cutting edge of independent music. At the risk of sounding like a heretic, fringe seems like an extension of that tradition.
- What inspired you to create this?
I hit my 50s and I wasn’t doing what I wanted to be known for. I had a pretty nice life and everything looked good on paper but I wasn’t feeling it. When I decided to study acting fulltime, I realized that I had a unique voice.
I’ve lived a life outside of the theatre—a few lives actually—and my biggest frustration with watching performing arts is that I rarely see myself. I become moved and I can relate to aspects of the story on stage, sure, but only now am I seeing anyone that starts to come close to my experience.
And I’m a straight white cis-woman.
So INHIBITIONIST(!) comes from a woman who has lived a life, had a bunch of different careers, built a number of businesses, met lots of people all over the US in every type of career or life circumstance. I feel like audience members share a lot of these feelings and experiences. Because, after all, I was only an audience member for 35 years. INHIBITIONIST(!) feels like a story that is ready to be received.
- Life has been weird the last few years, to say the least. How has the “real world” affected the art you’re creating?
INHIBITIONIST(!) debuted at the Fresno Rogue Festival on March 6, 2020. The main theme of the show is about self-assertion and how that gets me into trouble. This was my very first solo show. At the risk of sounding grandiose, the fact that a global pandemic coincided with my return to the stage certainly confirmed my core premise.
- What have you learned from working on your show so far?
Audience response always amazes me. I brought the show back to Fresno recently, and (1) it was super cool to see how many men were in the audience and (2) some people saw it the first time I debuted it—3 years ago—and they had to come back to see it again.
I said initially I am always amazed at what people share about themselves with me after the show. I take that so seriously because while it’s a funny show and the memories that people share with me tend to be light-hearted, they also reflect some very personal experiences. I just love that. I love what this show inspires in people and how folks are just along with me on this ride.
- There’s a mysterious stranger in the back row of your show, wearing a big ol’ N95 mask and a baseball cap and there’s something weirdly familiar about them, and then they come up afterwards to tell you they loved your show. In your WILDEST DREAMS, who is this mysterious stranger? (Bonus points if your mysterious stranger is an Atlanta celeb.)
Hannah Gadsby
[Ed. note: 1,000 points to Hope for name-checking a celebrity who got their big break at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, good show]
- Fringes are the place to really push the boundaries so we gotta ask: are you inviting your family to this show are “Hey, maybe sit this one out you guys…”
I’ll introduce you if they show up.
- Will your show change the world?
Depends on the world.
- Zoom meetings: dress up head to toe or Donald Duck it?
I dress before making coffee, so head to toe. I have also gone through more makeup in the past 3 years because of Zoom meetings than ever in my life.
- We’re making an excellent Fringey Feelings playlist. Describe your show in two or three songs we can add to keep the jams flowing.
Satisfaction [Devo]
Fireball [Pitbull]
When the Levee Breaks [Zeppelin]
Sounds amazing, right? Click here to learn more and get your tickets to this show today.
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