Title of Show: Anesti Danelis: This Show Will Change Your Life Venue: Laughing Horse @ Hanover Tap Time: 6.15pm Dates: 4th – 28th August Photographer: Dahlia Katz Links: Profile and Social Media
Hi Anesti. Tell me about your 2022 Edinburgh Festival Fringe offering, This Show Will Change Your Life.
This Show Will Change Your Life is a musical spoof on self-help and wellness culture. I just remember waking into the self-help section of a bookstore and how every book was like “HOW TO UNF**K YOURSELF!!!” I was being yelled at by books. And we’re also given so much advice from everyone about how to live our lives, and how to make them better, and these false grandiose claims on “how to change your life by (blank)”. Idk about you but every time I’ve finished a self-help book my reaction has always been “oh okay this entire book could have literally been a sentence.” – I just think this world was ripe for poking fun at and I decided to write comedic songs inspired by it.
Expect a fun concert of original comedic songs inspired by these themes. Think stand-up meets music. If you’re a fan of the Flight of the Conchords or the Lonely Island then this show will be right up your alley. It’s filled with anthems on relationships, career advice, guilty pleasures and more. Feel in control by Stealing from Work! Get revenge on an ex by sleeping with both their parents! Learn how to date while navigating a close knit immigrant family in I Live at Home! Get insider tips on how to know if your partner is cheating on you (Do they wear clothes? They’re cheating on you! Who are they dressing up for???)! And so much more. This show will change your life.
You’re an award-winning comedian, musician, writer, and filmmaker. But what’s your first love?
Pancakes. I love pancakes so much. Over the pandemic I started experimenting with recipes and making dessert inspired pancakes like tiramisu, or apple pie, and it was a great time. It got to the point where all my friends started asking me to make them pancakes so I had to stop posting about them to my instagram stories and make them in secret.
You’re described as a musical comedian and “viral internet song boy”. What do you get up to online? (Please provide social media links at the bottom)
I create musical comedy videos and comedic shorts online. During the pandemic I created longer musical comedy videos for my visual comedy album Quarantine Bops which was a comedic look at our pandemic experience. Everything from the baking bread craze, to the toilet paper panic. Then I shifted more to instagram and tiktok where I would create shorter musical comedy videos. My first series was taking Yahoo Answers and turning them into songs. Then I did an Every Freelance Conversation song series of all of the freelancing pet peeves that I have come across, and also a bunch of comedic songs.
How does performing in Toronto, Ontario compare with performing in Edinburgh, Scotland?
I feel like in general, audiences are always up to have fun at shows in both Toronto and Edinburgh. The interesting thing I’ve noticed is how some material works better in one place over the other because of the small minute differences in night life, or social culture.
Finally, ask and answer a question of your own.
My question is “will this show change your life?” and my answer is “hells yes”.
