BY KATHRYN PIERCE
In collaboration with @SomewhereEDI
DEADLINE at the Fest interviewed Scotland’s only mixed LGBT choir, Loud and Proud. They talked prep work, pride and the importance of community in the run up to their Edinburgh Fringe gig.
Here’s their collective take on our Q&A:
Choose three words to describe Loud and Proud Choir:
Community, love, and harmony.
How many are there of you?
There are 40 to 60 members, plus our extensive fan club.
Best thing about being part of Scotland’s LGBT+ choir?
The sense of community and pride singing together, there’s just nothing else like it.
Best thing about being in the Fringe?
Being part of the 3rd biggest festival in the world! And part of the party!
How do you prepare for the gig?
Hieroglyphic crib sheets, learning before bed, social rehearsals with a bit too much good food and drink, remembering to breathe, and by not eating too much on the day to save ourselves from burps.
Strategies to cope with hecklers or wannabe comedians in the audience?
Have you met Steve our MC? I wouldn’t mess with him. Hard as nails with the biggest smile!
Any gig rituals, lucky mascots or superstitions?
Just our rainbow choir badges.
Biggest challenge during Fringe month?
Getting from Aye to B in Edinburgh.
How does it feel being one of the few choirs appearing on the Fringe?
We’re the local talent let loose on the world!
Sum up being in Edinburgh in August?
Madness, welcome to the House of Fun.
If Loud and Proud were a comedian, who would it be?
There are too many comedians already in the choir, we don’t need any more.
Favourite songs to sing?
Ae fond kiss, Something inside so strong, I wish I knew How it Feels to be Free, Oh What a World… there are so many good songs!
Are you partial to any dancing or choreography?
Occasionally, but getting 40 people to do the same thing while balancing on risers on a stage is a trifle challenging, can be hilarious and requires a comprehensive risk assessment, so we camp it up instead sometimes!
What can we expect from your concert on the 18th Aug?
Some of our all-time favourite songs in one of our favourite venues. Come and join us to share the love.
If you were to shout one thing out loud and proud so that everyone in the Fringe could hear you, what would it be?
Nat King Cole had the right idea: Let there be love!
Loud and Proud perform regularly in the city throughout the year, and travel abroad to attend LGBT+ choir festivals, the most recent being Various Voices 2018 in Munich, Germany. The choir is proud to support the vital work at Waverley Care, and all proceeds from their Fringe event go to Scotland’s HIV and Hepatitis C charity.
