Spoken Word

15 Sep 2024

Spoken Word: Episode 51: Laura Fisher; Why Not Believe in Everything?-Melbourne Fringe Festival, 2024.

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Spoken Word: Episode 51: Laura Fisher; Why Not Believe in Everything?-Melbourne Fringe Festival, 2024.

This week James caught up with Laura Fisher, as they discussed her upcoming play, Why Not Believe in Everything?-Melbourne Fringe Festival, 2024.

“Why Not Believe in Everything?” is a Melbourne Fringe show on from October 16th to 20th at Club Voltaire (North Melbourne). An absurd, comedy.

Do you believe that the earth is 4.6 billion years old? Or do you believe that the earth is 6,000 years old and that it was created in 7 days? Thanks to “Why Not Believe in Everything?” you no longer have to choose.

A surreal comedy incorporating poetry, mime and puppets, this play tells the Biblical story of creation alongside evolution.

Adam and Eve begin as early primates, before evolving into apes, then humans. Aware of the inconsistencies in their reality, they do their best to make sense of the confusion (as we humans always do!).

The next generation Cain and Abel argue about hunter-gathering versus farming while Noah’s family struggle to understand their role in extinction. Finally, the Tower of Babel falls leaving Nimrod grappling to comprehend human expansion.

The only constant characters are God (who doesn’t say much) and Adam’s first wife Lilith: the succubus from Jewish folklore. Despite her bad reputation, Lilith denies being mates with Satan. Instead, she is a strong presence who challenges the insubordinate role of women and speaks up for extinct animals.

“Why Not Believe in Everything?” was selected for the 2023 Cracked Actors Summer Readings where author Laura Fisher received “Best Production and Producer Award.” Since then, Laura has been researching and obsessing over the misunderstood she-demon, Lilith. Laura is joined by the talented Eddy Burger, Katie Lohner and Pauline Sherlock in a performance that will leave you amused, confused and feeling more human than ever.

About Laura Fisher

Laura Fisher is an energetic poet, and performer who is well known on the Melbourne spoken word scene for convening Radio Laria Poetry. Previous to that, she was the regular MC for the Girls on Key poetry gig. Through both Radio Laria and Girls on Key, Laura has been a keen advocate and promoter for women and non-gender conforming poets. She has been the feature poet for various Melbourne poetry gigs.

Laura enjoys all kinds of writing. Her publications include a poem in the Dan Poets and in 2020 she was short-listed for the Eyelands short story award. At the age of 19 she left home to study English literature and Religious Studies at Manchester University. Nothing came from her study of religion until she wrote her play “Why not Believe in Everything?”- a piece that seeks to show how easy (or how difficult) it is to consolidate the Biblical story of creation with evolution theory. “Why Not Believe in Everything?” was selected for the 2023 Cracked Actors Summer Readings where Laura won “Best Producer and Production Award.”

“Laura is joined by talented performing artists Eddy Burger, Katie Lohner, Pauline Sherlock, Damien Ng, Vasi Samudra Devi and Ebem Toala.

This eclectic cast combines an impressive range of passions including: surrealism, acting, visual art, spoken word, singing, clowning, butoh, grotesque jazz, circus, palaeontology, and comedy in many forms.