Laura Davis is an Australian comedian based in Edinburgh who has become a Fringe staple over nearly a decade of acclaimed shows. They return again this August with ‘Despair is Beneath Us’. We spoke to Laura about the show, the Fringe from a resident’s perspective, and the stamina gained from constant performing for a month.
Can you tell us about ‘Despair is Beneath Us’?
‘Despair is Beneath Us’ is my thirteenth show. I’m really excited about it. It feels like the show I’ve been trying to write for quite some time. It really feels like a culmination of a lot of work. I wrote it in January and February when I was going through a pretty hard time, the details of which I’ve left deliberately fairly blurry. It’s about facing down fears and change. It’s also probably the most autobiographical show I think I’ve done.
And how is the preparation for the Fringe going?
I find there’s long days I’m not used to. That there’s an endless amount of work that can be done and I don’t know what time it is. And it’s the 1st of July and I’ve seen the posters start to go up around Teviot Place, and that was a bit of a shock this early!
You performed the show at Melbourne a few months back. Has it been revised at all since, are you a constant tinkerer?
I am an endless tinkerer. It’s always really nice to have that period in between Melbourne and Edinburgh to put some extra polish on it, to open it all back up and put it back together. I would say it always changes 20% or something in between those two seasons. But before every show I’ll have changed something from the one before I can’t keep my fingers out of it. It’s a problem!
Your poster for the show this year is a letter to the audience. What was the reason behind that?
I’ve always published a little letter that got stapled to my fliers, and people liked them more than my fliers. If you ask people if they want a flier they always say no, but if you ask them if they want a letter they say yes. So I thought I would really commit to it this year and print out a few big ones. It’s got a kind of wartime propaganda feel to it!
And for those unfamiliar with your work, how would you describe your comedy and your approach to performance?
Unorthodox, I think is fair! I don’t know. I find it so interesting to say what other people say about it sometimes. When you get reviews back and they say that it’s particularly highbrow, and I never think that it is particularly highbrow. Or people use words like, ‘It’s intense!’ I’m so sorry, I didn’t realise we were pushing the line here.
I would say it’s always fairly reflective and philosophical. It’s irreverent and silly, and ideally I try to make it as generous as possible with the audiences. It’s important to me that people feel safe and they get to relax and feel like they can come along for the ride.
Is the Fringe a different experience as a resident than it was as a visitor?
I really like it. It feels the same as when I moved to Melbourne after doing a few comedy festivals. There’s a big difference walking into a neighbourhood that you know and feel comfortable in. You get a different perspective on the whole festival. You get to see it coming on the horizon. You see it picking up. You see how the city changes during the month of August. Then you see it slowly turn back.
What keeps you coming back to the Fringe as a performer?
I think it is such good exercise as a performer. There’s really no other experience where you can get to not only perform your hour that many times, but you also do all these other spots, and they’re all very, very different. You know, doing something like eight shows a day, it really does teach you things going from a kids’ gig in the afternoon to a late-night show at three in the morning.
You always notice it when you do club gigs in September for instance, and you’re just so fit! It really whips you into shape!
Do you have any of those other slots booked in already, or is it going to be as-and-when they come up?
It will be as-and-when. I’ll do ‘Best of the Fest’ at the Assembly and some of those late-night ones. ACMS is always worth it, as they’re good kids. It’s always really fun.
For your last few Fringe shows you seem to have found a stable home at the Monkey Barrel. What is it about the Monkey Barrel that appeals to you?
I really love working with Monkey Barrel. I love my little Harry Potter-themed escape room that it is for the rest of the year. And the really nice thing about the Monkey Barrel is that it’s running all-year round as a comedy club, same as the Stand. They really do cultivate and audience for the Fringe all year round. They have people who are tourists, but also loyal locals who’ll be along. They always programme some really interesting artists as well; some quite different pieces of work.
Do you have any particular Fringe memories that jump out, whether good or bad?
I did a late-night show at the Underbelly a couple of years ago. It was a very late show and the entire front row was made up of these sort of amalgamated stag dos. And they were all in fancy dress. But there were a lot of police, and it just felt like the sort of corporate gig I would not have agreed to do! It was a surreal front row to have a firefighter and a clown, and you go, ‘Okay, this is a fever dream!’
Are there any other acts at the Fringe you would recommend audiences go and see, who may not otherwise get the attention they deserve?
I think that there are some really fascinating acts on at Monkey Barrel. I always really like getting to see Liam Withnail. And Ayo Adenekan is doing his first show. at Monkey Barrel. It’s called ‘Black Mediocrity’. He’s here all year and it’s been really exciting to watch him develop.
‘Despair is Beneath Us‘ is at Monkey Barrel Comedy – Monkey Barrel 2 from Thu 31 Jul to Sun 24 Aug 2025 at 17:45
Laura will also perform at ACMS on Wed 6 Aug 2025
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