The Ladies Who Ranch are a collective of comedians, actors, and writers based in New York who perform as an improv group. They host a monthly show in the Big Apple mixing weird character comedy, improv, monologues and musical comedy. 2024 is the first year they’ve performed as a troupe at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. We spoke to them about the collective, what we can expect from their show, and having their impressive writing careers postponed by the Pandemic. 

Can you tell us about ‘Ladies Who Ranch’? 

The Ladies Who Ranch are a comedy group who care deeply about uplifting women’s voices, particularly their own. As artists, we like creating comedy that acknowledges the tension between the sterile cultural conversation around womanhood and the vibrant, complicated inner lives of women who don’t quite fit the mold society has made for them – and we do this most often through improv comedy! While we all have years of ‘serious’ training in improv at various New York institutions, the group’s voice really comes from our five unique voices and senses of humor joining together to create this grab bag of controlled chaos and fun. We also know each other really well and have played together for years, so we know how to set each other up for scene work that still somehow always feels surprising. The five members of the group are Kelly Cooper, Caitlin Dullea, Maya Sharma, Caro Yost, and Sophie Zucker.

How did ‘Ladies Who Ranch’ come about?

We met in 2017 at a comedy theater that was in the basement of a jazz club where a rat once fell from the ceiling! Two of us had gone to college (uni?) together, and had the opportunity to put up a show, so we asked the coolest girls at the theater to perform with us. We’ve been friends and collaborators ever since.

For anyone who might be new to you, could you describe your approach to comedy? What draws you to improv?

Our approach to comedy is anything goes. We like to show people the joy of embracing and really playing with everything that happens. We also have this idea behind our group that each of us has a super unique individual voice but what we do together is better than what any one of us could do on our own, so improv is the perfect vehicle for that. And it makes us laugh and laugh.

Who are your comedy heroes, and how have they influenced you?

Maria Bamford, Molly Shannon, Maya Erskine, Patti Harrison, Cole Escola, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, all of our moms, and the van from Little Miss Sunshine (that won’t stop honking). Clearly all of these artists have their own unique, singular voice (which we love), but what they share is heart and the inclination to run towards emotion instead of away from it. Ironic detachment is not for us feeling beasts!

You’ve got an impressive guest list lined up. Can you tell us about that?

Yes! So far we have Lara Ricote, Emma Sidi, Chloe Petts, Lorna Rose Treen, Elf Lyons, Ray Badran, Ania Magliano, and Siblings – with more to be announced. We wanted to book people not only whose acts we loved, but also felt like could vibe with our specific no holds-barred, goofy brand of comedy. Our guests this summer have the option to also improvise with us, in addition to doing a set on the show, so we picked people who were bravely down to clown. We salute them. 

One of your members, Sophie, was in Edinburgh last year with ‘Sophie Sucks Face’. What for you are the best and worst things about the Fringe?

Best part: all the other amazing acts you get to see!

Worst part: the lads.

When you were here last year, your work on The Daily Show had been interrupted by the writers’ strike. Is all now resolved and have you any other interesting projects on the go?

Yes! In fact, all of our work was interrupted by the writers’ strike, as we were in the middle of pitching an animated TV show we’d been working on for a few years. The strike ended after five months, with some great wins on behalf of the Writers Guild, and we were able to sell our show! Perhaps you’ll be able to watch it in 5-10 years, if TV still exists. 

Beside ‘Ladies Who Ranch’ can we expect to see you performing elsewhere during August?

Yes! We’re still in the process of booking spots, but you’ll be able to see us on other variety shows happening at the Fringe. And of course we’ll be doing the performance of self for as long as we all may live. Follow us at @ladieswhoranch for more info! 

Are there any other acts at the Fringe that you would recommend audiences see?

There are so many great shows going on, but one we’ll specifically shout out is our good friend and frequent collaborator Ian Lockwood’s ‘Farewell Tour‘. It’s his solo show about being a popstar who’s going to kill himself after his last concert. It’s very funny!!!!!!!

‘Ladies Who Ranch‘ is at Pleasance Courtyard – Below from Wed 31 Jul to Mon 12 Aug 2024