Dan Wye is a critically acclaimed stand-up comedian and the creator of the cabaret legend Séayoncé. QX caught up with Dan for a quick chat about their passion for comedy and their latest directing role.
Many of our readers will know you as Séayoncé (the ghost whisperer) and through your stand-up comedy shows. What drew you to directing this comedy musical, and how are you adapting to your new role?
I’ve been directing a lot more recently, working with a vast array of comedy acts, where I love tuning into their individual voices to help create the best work possible, but I’ve never worked on a project like this where the creative’s involved primary skillset is in musical theatre. I said yes to this project originally as the Vaults is a space I have worked with before as a performer and loved, but also because I was really excited by the idea of creating something with a room full of people, as working in comedy doesn’t always allow you to do this. What I loved most, though, was being able to learn so much from everyone and also share my skillset as a comedian and cabaret performer, allowing the actors to feel creatively fulfilled and have autonomy, which in turn evolved the project into a collaboration of multiple incredible creative minds with different backgrounds. The end product is a stage full of performers who are insanely talented triple threats who now have the comedy instincts of a pro.
Talk us through Ancient Grease and what makes it particularly funny, without giving too much away?
It’s my favourite type of show that centres around joy; it’s comedy for comedy’s sake, which is elevated and punctuated by the musical theatre elements. It’s exactly what you want from a parody, it respects and is self-referential to the original content, and the love people have for Grease, whilst evolving it into a new story by merging it with the myths of Ancient Greece, creating a brilliantly ridiculous camp queer retelling of a classic. No matter who you are or what your background is, I can bet money on the fact that there’s something in the show that will make you laugh.
When we last spoke to you, you said working in front of a queer audience was easier than working in front of a general audience, as there was less need to explain things. How is that notion being applied to Ancient Grease?
My work always tries to focus on allowing audiences to experience the beauty and freedom of queer joy, no matter who they are, and this is what I believe we’ve achieved with this project, too. This show crosses so many genres, so whether you’re a fan of Grease or Ancient Greece or just simply musicals, or even the variety of different forms of comedy we’ve injected into this show. There is hopefully something for everyone to enjoy, even if that’s just basking in the insane talent you get to see on stage and the brilliant minds behind this project.
Ancient Grease is a musical, so what are the standout songs?
It would be hard for me to select just a few because, truly, I enjoy all of them, whether that’s the powerful ballads or the high-energy ensemble numbers. It’s been such a blessing being in a room every day with people who can really sing. Also, Callum did an amazing job rewriting the lyrics, Corin did an amazing job rewriting the music, and everything is punctuated by Lucinda’s incredible choreography. Every song has an essence of the classics you know and love, but have been elevated into the hilarious world of parody.
What do you hope audiences will take away with them at the end of the show?
This show offers the chance for just pure escapism, a chance to just laugh and have a silly time in a room full of brilliant creatives who love and believe in what they are doing. I think shows like this are essential in today’s climate, an opportunity to just feel joy and cackle for a couple of hours and forget about all the bad things. It’s a quality I love most about musicals, you get to lose yourself and then step out of the theatre and think the possibilities are endless.
What else are you working on that we can look forward to?
I have a few one-off Séayoncé shows happening up and down the UK over the next few months. Our next one is at the Brighton Fringe in May. Plus, I’m slowly starting to work on a new standup project. I am also currently collaborating with the incredible Operotica (@operotica on Instagram) for a new Edinburgh Fringe show involving Séayoncé, and what we have cooking up this summer will blow you away. I’m so excited and honoured to be working with such talented people. Plus some more directing projects in the pipeline, which I’m also very excited by.
Ancient Grease runs until the 31st May at The Vaults Theatre, Launcelot Street, London SE1 7AD, United Kingdom.
All images supplied.
