American actor and storyteller Eric Weiner brings his show My Life Is a Sonnet to the Edinburgh Fringe next month.
“Charlie Katz found true love in a prep school seminar on Shakespeare’s sonnets – but he let it slip away. Now a chance encounter has given him new hope. Is it ever too late for love? That’s the question posed by this touching and comic solo show, written and performed by Eric Daniel Weiner, the acclaimed six-time Emmy nominee. Charlie struggles with mental health issues such as dissociation, depression, and rage. At long last, can he make himself vulnerable enough to experience true joy? Developed with and directed by Rob McCaskill.”
Where: Space 2 at theSpace on the Mile
When: 7-29 Aug
Ticket link: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/my-life-is-a-sonnet
What can you tell us about your show? What is it about and where did the idea come from?
My show started as an exercise in Rob McCaskill’s NYC acting class: he has you pick a Shakespeare sonnet and invent a five-minute story that would lead you to speak such elevated language. I loved the exercise so much that after Covid I contacted Rob about developing an hour-long version. Using Sonnet #73, I came up with a story about a boy in prep school who takes a seminar on Shakespeare’s sonnets. He hates the poetry, but he falls madly in love with a girl in the class.
How would you sell it to audiences in one paragraph?
In the show (and in my life!) I’m trying to be as open and honest with myself and others as I can. To my surprise, I’ve been finding that if I open up, people sometimes open up right back. My show is funny in parts and touching in others, but I think the best thing about it is that it’s challenging me (and you) to live more richly, to treasure the present moment. Can we live our lives as beautifully as a Shakespeare sonnet? Probably not. But it’s a good goal!
Do you enjoy participating in the Fringe? And do you have any moments you particularly remember?
Seeing Philosophy of the World at last year’s Fringe. It was such an inspiring reminder of how powerful, funny, shocking, sad, and uplifting theater can be. Also, I went to the Hollywood Fringe’s opening night party. So many performers in wild costumes! So many excited people looking to share their stories! It made me really happy. Maybe if all the world really were a stage, the world would be a better place.
What are you looking forward to the most in Edinburgh?
Having a run of the show. A few hours after my performance, I’m ready to do it again. Also, while I know flyering is an infamously hard part of the Fringe experience, I have found that sometimes the individual one-on-one connection I make with a fellow Fringe-goer can be more profound than the more general connection I make with an audience. So, I’m looking forward to more of that!
What’s next for the show?
I don’t know what’s next, but I want to keep doing the show, wherever and whenever I can.