Delea Shand is a comedian and cabaret artist, and the operatic force behind the joyfully ridiculous Madame Chandelier, who has been tearing down boundaries and bringing opera to new audiences for almost ten years. She’s preparing to take her show for children, the family-friendly comedy opera Madame Chandelier’s Grand Theft Opera to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this August.
What’s your show about and where can we see it?
Madame Chandelier’s Grand Theft Opera re-imagines elements of Mozart’s opera The Magic Flute as a video game. It’s about a mother whose teenage daughter gets sucked into her video game and needs to be rescued. At a time when we are all glued to our individual screens, I wanted to write a family show that brings people together, that everyone could enjoy.
It’s an operatic mega-mix with songs from opera’s most iconic divas like Carmen, Tosca, Madame Butterfly and of course, the Queen of the Night. I am always trying to make opera fun and accessible. It’s an art form that some people find impenetrable because it seems expensive, elite, or unrelatable, but opera is everywhere and many of these songs will be familiar, and not just to adults. If kids are watching Bluey, Carmen Sandiego, or even SpongeBob they have probably heard opera!
You can see it at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, 5th-16th August at Pleasance Courtyard.
Where do you get your inspiration from?
I go to a lot of live theatre, but I am an expert at booking the cheapest possible tickets so I can go more often. I love watching live comedy and cabaret, and I go to the opera probably once a month, which sounds posh, but every major opera company offers tickets starting at £15 or less! Absolute bargain! I’m also constantly inspired by my fellow comedians on the comedy circuit.
Who are your favourite Funny Women?
I love the old school comedians like Carol Burnett and Lucile Ball. They were true trail blazers and were not afraid to look like total idiots. I am also a huge fan of Bridget Christie and thought her TV show Change was hilarious and relatable. There are also so many absolutely incredible clowns I admire like Natalie Palamides, Julia Masli, Lucy Hopkins, Paulina Lenoir, and so many more.
What do you love about comedy?
I’m also an opera singer and when I first started doing comedy I was amazed at how much autonomy it gave me. In opera, you’re a small cog in a huge machine. You spend hours rehearsing, perfecting, and taking instructions from someone else. But in comedy, you can come up your own weird idea that afternoon, frantically sketch it out on the train on your way to a gig, and try it out that night. The failure is all yours, but so are the successes.
Comedy and opera both require skill and discipline, and I love that I’ve carved out this weird niche where I get to do both.
What do you think makes a great family comedy?
I think there is great skill involved in creating something that’s funny to a broad audience, and it’s about finding universal experiences that can be interpreted on different levels, leaning into joy and silliness, and finding a new POV that’s widely relatable. The Lego movies do this to perfection, but my favourite example is Disney’s Inside Out. They took the abstract concept of emotional regulation and turned it into something concrete that was hilarious, understandable, and had moments that were incredibly profound.
Any advice for those starting out?
Dance like no one is watching. And don’t waste your energy comparing your journey to anyone else’s. There are so many women on the comedy circuit right now and I admire every single one of them, especially the young women in their 20s who are fearlessly taking up space and owning the room. So many experienced funny women were welcoming when I was a scared baby comic first starting out, and I always try to pass on this kindness when I meet new comedians. My motto is: Be funny. Be reliable. Be nice.
You can keep up with with Delea Shand and Madame Chandelier on Facebook and Instagram.
Tickets for Madame Chandelier’s Grand Theft Opera at the Edinburgh Fringe can be found here.
