#Twintterview: Ali Hardiman

In our first #Twintterview of Edfringe 2019, Fringebiscuit meets Ali Hardiman, actor, writer and one half of the cast of ‘Electric’. Hardiman’s debut play had a sold out run at Dublin’s Theatre Upstairs in 2018 and has recently finished a successful National Tour of Ireland. We caught up with this breakaway talent to find out just what makes her tick.

FB: Which is more daunting — a bare stage or a blank page?
AH: Definitely a blank page, I find it easier working on my feet. When writing I have to be so disciplined and set myself deadlines or else I would sit staring at that blank page all day!

FB: What's your favorite word / phrase / accent?
AH: A new favorite phrase of mine is 'heavy traffic'. When describing someone who is intense, or goes on a bit you can say "Oh, she's heavy traffic". It. Says. It. All.

FB: If you could swap lives with anyone for a day, who would it be and why?
AH: Phoebe Waller Bridge, for sure! I think she is an amazing, I'm a big fan of her work and I'd love to walk around in her brain for a day and steal all her brilliant ideas!

FB: What’s the biggest challenge you've overcome in making your fringe show?
AH: I would say our biggest challenge was working out the style of the piece. There are monologues directed to the audience as well as dialogue between the actors and we wanted to make sure these changes flowed well, it took us ages to make it work the way we wanted!

FB: Drama school — yay, nay, or it depends? Why?
AH: I would say yay. Not only did I learn so much in drama school but upon graduating I had this fantastic support system of friends all going through the same thing. It opened my eyes about how hard you have to work in this industry and gave me the tools I needed to become a better actor.

FB: What gets your creative juices flowing?
AH: When I'm belly laughing at something on stage or on screen. I always come away thinking, 'I could write something like that' or, 'I want to get up on stage and do that'! It's a great feeling.

FB: Laughter is the best medicine, unless…
AH: You have a broken heart. You need 6 tubs of Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie and there's no two ways about it.

You can see Ali Hardiman in Electric at Underbelly Cowgate, August 1-11, 13-25.