The Merkin Sisters by Stephanie Morin-Robert and Ingrid Hansen
August 19, 20, 22, 24 – 26 at the Westbury Theatre
An interview with Ingrid Hansen.
Describe your show in one sentence.
The most outrageous physical comedy at fringe: Two sisters trying to create the Ultimate Piece of Art- using any means necessary.
Okay, now that we’re intrigued… what’s the longer description of your show?
The Merkin Sisters is a no-holds-barred physical comedy show about a strangely hilarious sibling rivalry. It’s a mash-up of uncensored live theater, comedy, clown, dance and puppetry. The Merkin Sisters is created and performed by multi-award winning puppeteer Ingrid Hansen and critically acclaimed choreographer and storyteller Stéphanie Morin-Robert. This duo show is what they call “a vivacious romp sending up our inner caveman and our ultra-queens, smothered with the unique flavor of innocence and absurdity that comes from surviving childhood together.”
This show is a collaboration between Stéphanie Morin-Robert and Ingrid Hansen. How did this collaboration come about and how do your unique specialities (choreography and puppeteering respectively) work together in this show?
Ingrid Hansen: ” Stephanie and I have both toured our own work and admired each other’s creative sensibility and otherwise badass-ness, so last year we teamed up to create a cabaret piece with a pink knit sweater that transforms into a singing vagina. And we were hooked. This show is the first of many, I think The Merkin Sisters have a lot of adventures to come. One elderly patron at the Winnipeg Fringe saw The Merkin Sisters and told us, “We need this. You keep going.”
The press release mentions a celebration of your “inner caveman and ultra-queens”. Can you expand on what this means in the context of your show and how you celebrate these parts of your personality?
The Merkin Sisters are fearless. They are not bound by rules of gender, propriety, or how a woman or girl “should” behave. We flaunt and destroy all notions of ‘feminine’ taboo, and celebrate the human body and everything that is beautiful, bizarre, natural, unnatural, sexy, and gross about our bodies. It’s a romp. Prepare yourself.
Anything else you want audiences to know about the show?
Mature content.
Hold on to your butts.
The 36th Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival is August 17 – 27. Get your tickets at tickets.fringetheatre.ca .