Comedian Alice Frick talks about safety ahead of her new Fringe show Live Like A Criminal
BY ALICE FRICK, IMAGE PROVIDED
The scariest part of doing stand-up comedy is not standing on stage telling jokes – it is the walk to the venue, especially in the winter, when it gets dark far too early.
Once, I was heading to a gig just outside of London. My map app told me to take the underpass that didn’t appear to be heading anywhere eventful, let alone safe. Who is programming these apps? Serial killers?
I reluctantly followed the instructions because I had no idea where I was and where I was supposed to go. The underpass smelled like a combination of urine and death, and I wished I hadn’t watched so many True Crime documentaries! Eventually, the underpass spat me out in a very poorly lit park and I started wondering if I should have written my eulogy instead of a new comedy show. While I was planning my own funeral, I suddenly heard steps behind me. My favourite type of steps: accelerating footsteps! My heart sped up, stopped and collapsed at the same time. I dared not look over my shoulder to see who these footsteps belonged to. I just picked up my speed and tried to reach the end of the park as quickly as possible. The steps kept coming closer.
When I finally reached the end of the park and saw a street in front of me, I started to run. Not a quick run I didn’t want to look like someone who was scared or running away from someone. It was more an “I-run-across-the-street-because-a-car-is-coming”- run. There was no car. But my run indicated there could have been. I was so focused on faking a good run, that I forgot for a moment I was being followed. Then finally, a pub appeared! My destination.
Slowing down, almost at my safe space, I found the courage to look over my shoulder to see if my murderer was still there. He was! A big young man in a tight t-shirt that showed off every single muscle he had – and he had a lot – was walking just a few meters behind me. To my surprise he smiled at me: “You’re here for the gig?”. I nodded, paralysed, still not sure what to do with him. It turned out that big-muscle-guy was one of the comedians on the bill, who recognised me on the train and tried to walk close to me because he got scared in the park too. It’s nice to know that even big comedians with muscles get scared, although I don’t know if I was more terrified of the dark park or him following me! But anyway… the gig went well. We both killed it.
I’m currently doing a PhD at the University of Kent, looking into how to use stand-up comedy to address discrimination faced by women. Part of my work focuses on safety in the comedy industry. My current solo show Live Like A Criminal is part of my PhD research, aiming to address challenging topics with the right portion of humour.
To watch a preview of Alice’s show Live Like A Criminal, click here: phoenixartsclub.com/events/live-like-a-criminal/
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