SHIRA YEVIN – HOT DATES INTERVIEW BY PAULINE ADAMEK FROM ARTS BEAT LA

Hot Dates

What’s your show about?

My show is about memorable dates, literally and figuratively, in my lifetime- from girlhood milestones to attempted womanhood.

What was the inspiration for it?

I have always been obsessed with dates, and the concept of time. I studied performance art at UPenn with Deb Margolin, and since then have had the goal of doing a one-woman show. Last year, I took a Hollywood Fringe storytelling workshop with Deana Barone, and the dream rekindled. Being a single woman dating in LA, I meet a lot of other single ladies with similar frustrations and experiences, so this seemed like an ideal platform to broach the subject.

Will this be the first time you are performing this show?

Yes, this is a world premiere!

What is it about the Fringe that is so conducive to presenting solo shows?

The Fringe community is extremely supportive and receptive. There is also a real community vibe, it feels almost like a family.

Solo shows can be a tricky undertaking — what makes them so challenging to develop and to perform?

When it’s only 1 person onstage, you have to really strip everything down and keep it simple. For me, my show is also completely autobiographical and based on true stories, so at the same time it is incredible personal. Performing this show feels like standing naked in front of a crowd. My director asked me what stories I am afraid to tell- then insisted we tell those stories!

What’s great / remarkable / unique / special about your show?!

I am a singer/performer, so I have weaved in my own original songs, as well as some dance and spoken words elements, peppered throughout the storytelling and comedy. I also feel like I am bringing a New York sensibility to Hollywood! My humor is extremely sarcastic and self-parodying.

When shaping a solo show, do you think comedy is an essential element? Why?

Absolutely, comedy is pivotal to solo shows- my show is autobiographical, so the saying comes to mind, you have to laugh at yourself, or else you just cry.

What do you hope audiences to gain from your show?

In creating this show, I experienced a process of self-examination and realization. In a culture that seems to outcast a single woman in her mid-thirties, I came to the conclusion that finding inner peace is more fundamental that finding a life partner. I also wanted to express the importance of bouncing back from life challenges, and taking risks to achieve your goals. For me, creating and performing a one-woman show was one of those goals. Hopefully I can inspire some others to do the same, and take risks to achieve their own life goals.

Go here to the Hollywood Fringe Festival site for showtimes for Hot Dates.

Pauline Adamek is a Los Angeles-based arts enthusiast with twenty-five years’ experience covering International Film Festivals and reviewing new Theatre, Film and Restaurants.
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