Caro Meets Comedy Interview

Sofie Hagen: Shimmer Shatter

By Caro Moses | Published on Tuesday 29 November 2016

The completely delightful Sofie Hagen has become a favourite of ours (and of everyone else, seemingly) over the last couple of years, following her Fringe run of the show that won her the Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer gong in 2015, ‘Bubblewrap’.

This month she brings her newest set, ‘Shimmer Shatter’ to Soho Theatre for a two week run, and we are thrilled about that. I spoke to her ahead of the London dates for a bit of a catch up, and to find out more about the new show.

CM: Tell us about ‘Shimmer Shatter’. What’s the show about? Is there a theme?
SH: It’s a show about not knowing how to be a person. I’m meant to be an adult, I’m meant to have learned how to function by now, but I still feel like I’m an outsider in most situations. I don’t know how to small talk, I get nervous in big crowds and I hate parties with a passion. I am an introvert with anxiety – and I’m trying to work it all out. It’s about that. Oh, and about marrying a piece of wood. It’s a lot about love.

CM: Last time we spoke, you said that your previous show ‘Bubblewrap’ wasn’t consciously ‘written’, would you say the same about this new show? Or did you create it in a different way?
SH: Oh yeah, it’s pretty much the same process. A lot of things happened in the past year – a break-up, a minor brain-meltdown, a lot of personal realisations. So when I went on stage for the first time to do a longer set after ‘Bubblewrap’, I could talk for an hour about everything that had happened. And then I just had to tidy up all the mess and add jokes. I say ‘just’ as if it was easy. It wasn’t.

CM: Our reviewer in Edinburgh this summer really loved the show. How did the Fringe feel from your perspective? Did you feel the weight of expectation in 2016 after your success in 2015?
SH: Thank you! And yes – but the pressure I put on myself had nothing to do with ‘Bubblewrap’. That’s just how my mind works – I rarely give myself permission to be mediocre, except when it comes to exercise and healthy eating. Had ‘Bubblewrap’ failed, I still would have aimed to do a great show this year. And I hope people think I have succeeded.

CM: Has the show changed at all, since you performed it in August?
SH: A lot! Before the Fringe I had removed a story about my brother because I didn’t feel like people would get it. But when I started my tour, I put it back in – because I missed it. Now it’s my favourite bit of the story – and I feel like the audience love it too. I also downsized the story of the break-up a lot. In Edinburgh, I was really wallowing in my pain. I’ve moved on now and I can see it from a lighter perspective. But I love that I did it for a month – because it was an important story for me to share and for some people to hear. Now, we need to talk about my brother.

CM: How is your new ‘Made Of Human’ podcast going? Can you tell our readers a bit about it?
SH: I talk to people about their weirdnesses and mental health and awkwardnesses. Through the podcast, I discovered that I am not the only one who gets anxious over blueberries – because you never know what taste the next one you eat will have. I got so many tweets and messages from people who felt the same way – my whole life, I felt like a massive idiot because of that. Now I feel more normal.

And It’s gone beyond that as well – many of the MohPod listeners are connecting like crazy right now. I kid you not – there is a MohPod Listeners Secret Santa plan in place as we speak. They’re sending each other gifts. Some Saturday nights I’ll go to the Facebook page and go on Facebook Live and we’ll have our own little party – just for us introverts who prefer to stay home on a Saturday. It’s become so much more than a podcast.

I love it so much I’m almost welling up as I’m saying this.

CM: You’ve done a bit of TV and radio lately, haven’t you? Do you enjoy it as much as live performance?
SH: No – but that’s because I love live performance more than anything in the world. I do enjoy TV and radio. It’s fun. And it’s a nice way of learning about British culture. Panel shows and Radio4 quiz shows and so on – shows that most of you people grew up with. It’s all very new to me. And I’m honoured that I get to be a part of it.

CM: You’ve also performed for some very large audiences – is that scarier than performing to a smaller crowd?
SH: Not scarier. It’s a numbers game, really. Performing to less than 10 people is scarier than performing to 2000+. I think 70-90 people is the most perfect sized audience. And if you have to break it down – it’s scarier performing to a drunk audience on a Saturday night at 11pm than it is performing to a sober audience at 7pm on a Monday. In which case, the amount of people is irrelevant.

CM: Are you still happy here in the UK? Do you ever get homesick?
SH: I really am happy. I’m the least happy in December because of Christmas and whatnot. I miss Danish food a lot. It just *is* different. Especially around Christmas. A fan bought me some mince pies to one of my shows because I had said I wasn’t a fan of British Christmas stuff. I ate them all. They were okay. But they weren’t æbleskiver or risalamande. And I’ve tried your Christmas meals too. Your gravy is okay but it’s not brun sovs. Your potatoes are fine, but it’s not brunede kartofler. So I’m in homesickness overload in December but London is also the most beautiful at this time. The lights… The lights!

I have a monthly’ish gig at the Phoenix Artist Club where I invite some comedians to come down and do some new material. It’s a tiny audience of maybe 50 people so it always sells out. I’m doing a Christmas special on Sunday and I got Scandinavian Kitchen to sponsor it – so I’m bringing Danish Christmas sweets to the people of the audience. I can’t wait.

CM: There was a lot in ‘Bubblewrap’ about Westlife, and when we spoke to you in August 2015, I think you were hoping that at least some of the band might see the show at some point. Has that happened yet?
SH: Unfortunately not. I think the Westlife dream ends here. With every member of the band definitely knowing that I and the show exists. With Nicky and Brian following me on Twitter. With me having met three of them and told them about the show in person. With four of them saying they would love to see the show, but without any of them actually having seen it. I feel like I’ve done everything I could. I’m not sure I can say the same for them.

CM: What’s coming up next for you?
SH: After my two week run at the Soho Theatre in London, I am touring Denmark for a week. I will keep working on my podcast ‘Made of Human’ and eventually, I will do another show. Hopefully by August 2017.

Sofie performs ‘Shimmer Shatter’ at Soho Theatre from 5-17 Dec. See the venue website here for more info and to book.

LINKS: www.sohotheatre.com | www.sofiehagen.com | twitter.com/SofieHagen

Photo: Per Bix