Katie-Ann McDonough is a theatre director and National Theatre Associate Director whose work focuses on bold, collaborative storytelling and ensemble-led performance. She has directed and developed new writing across the UK, with a particular emphasis on inventive staging and physical comedy. Having previously directed SPY MOVIE: The Play!, helping shape its fast-paced, genre-driven style, she returns to the Fringe with The Librarians: A Very Serious Comedy!
How did you get into comedy/writing/producing etc?
I got into comedy the way every truly cool person does, improv. I got obsessed with improv in university and then stayed obsessed. It is such a great tool for creating work and it is so much fun. Most of the work I make now still starts in a room with people making each other laugh.
Tell us about your comedy style.
I love comedy with a lot of heart. Comedy can be used to tear things apart, but I am always taken by comedy that tries to put things and people back together again.
What’s your show about and where can we see it?
The Librarians: A Very Serious Comedy! is a new satirical farce about four very different people trying to save a library nobody official wants to save, and discovering, in the process, that the library’s problems aren’t accidental.
There’s a new head librarian who’s been sent to fail, an acting head who’s been there fifteen years and doesn’t know how to run it, an archivist who would prefer to live amongst stamps than people, and a volunteer who has been on work experience for years, and nobody there has ever wondered or bothered to ask his name.
It’s a farce, a satire, and, buried underneath both, a mystery. Think The Thick of It meets Fawlty Towers if Basil had seventeen years of falsified paperwork and a dead predecessor. There’s something for everyone, aged 12 to 112!
Where do you get your inspiration from?
I often think back on the TV shows that shaped my understanding of comedy as a kid. I loved Malcolm in the Middle and Scrubs. They were funny, ridiculous, and completely unafraid of absurdity, but always centred around characters that truly cared about each other.
I also love reading the autobiographies of past cast members of Saturday Night Live, like Bossypants by Tina Fey, Yes Please by Amy Poehler, and Girl Walks Into a Bar… by Rachel Dratch.
What do you think makes great comedy/content/sitcom/etc?
Anything with a unique, authentic perspective. You can always tell when comedy comes from a real place. One of my favourite shows is Derry Girls because it is so true to the time, and you can tell the comedy comes from a real experience.
Any advice for those taking their first show to Edinburgh?
Edinburgh is not the be all and end all. It is just part of your show’s journey.
What’s next for you?
I am currently writing a farce, set in a hairdresser’s with a long-time collaborator. I’m also working on something else that is unfortunately cloaked in mystery and NDAs, which makes me sound much more important than I actually am.
Who are your favourite Funny Women?
The women of Mischief Theatre already know they are my absolute favourites.
I’ve always loved Aisling Bea’s and Sharon Horgan’s writing.
I’m also currently obsessed with the women of Saturday Night Live UK. They’re absolutely killing it.
What do you love about comedy/writing/producing?
I love the immediate connection comedy creates. You might not know the person sat beside you in a tiny theatre at the Fringe, but you both just laughed at the same thing.
Tickets and more information for The Librarians: A Very Serious Comedy! can be found here!
