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Connect with solo performer, magician, and producer David Hirata on his Instagram, website, and facebook.
Be sure to catch his solo show, A Box Without a Bottom, at Best of SF Solo on November 18!
July 11 was World Fringe Day. I wish I’d had my act together so I could have posted this interview then, because David Hirata is the first friend I made at my first Fringe festival (San Diego Fringe 2018!). He’s one of my favorite Fringe artists of all time thanks to his insight, skill, and experience. He also taught me how to create community with others at Fringe. I consider him to be a role model, and I bet you will, too!
We discussed:
- What David learned about the process of producing a solo show as Director of Artist Relations at The Marsh in San Francisco (2:23)
- How David got his start as a solo artist, and how that led to the development of his most recent solo show, A Box Without a Bottom. (9:01)
- An excerpt from the show itself! (17:04)
- How David handled the controversy around the original title of his solo show (22:00)
- What David learned about a show’s “life outside the work” in the age of social media (29:56)
- David’s ideas for a new solo show (32:00)
- The questions he asks himself when trying to determine what material to include in a solo show (34:01)
- David’s recommendations for solo artists doing a long run (38:58)
- How David triumphed over “the curse of the sitting man” review (42:52)
- David’s favorite Neil Gaiman quote for struggling artists (58:00)
David Hirata