Sleeping Trees talk about their new show, Sci-Fi?

1 Tell us about your Fringe show

Our show this year is called SCI-FI?, it's essentially a live sci-fi comedy movie with a band who score the whole thing on stage, it follows on from last years MAFIA? and WESTERN?. We're a narrative sketch group so it's very fast paced, tonnes of characters and plenty of surreal, physical humour. We're on from 3rd-29th (exc. 18th) 5pm at the Pleasance Two. 

2 Best thing about the Fringe?

The thousands of shows! Each year we know more and more comedians and sketch groups from doing the circuit so our list of people to see just gets bigger and bigger! Aside from all the wonderful shows we'd probably say the food, there's a shop near the mile called Piemaker and a few years ago we lived in the flat above it; that was one of the more fattening Fringes in recent memory. 

3 Worst thing about the Fringe?

Piemaker, for the same reasons we gave in the previous question. That and the OODLES of rain. 

4 How many years have you been coming to the Fringe?

This will be our seventh! We did our first in 2010 at one of the free venues and had no idea what we were doing! We somehow managed to drum up an audience though and haven't looked back since! We absolutely love it and it's brilliant seeing the same faces popping back to see us each year as well as introducing our work to new audiences and seeing our Edinburgh following grow. 

5 Favourite Fringe venue?

Josh's is the Pleasance Two as it'll be our second year there and it's a lovely room, John's is Pleasance One as it has the comfiest seats and James's is Piemaker, it's not really a venue but they make such delicious pies (promise that's the last time we'll mention it). 

6 Best Fringe memory?

Probably when we did a one off showing of MAFIA? in 2014 midway through our run. It was a the first time we performed in the Pleasance Two and it was venue we had always wanted to do, we managed to sell it out and it felt like a really big achievement. It was certainly the first time we felt like we were really getting somewhere and we could see how far we'd come from performing to a handful of people in The Hive back in 2010. 

7 Best heckle?

It wasn't so much a heckle but last year a man just up and left midway through the show, he just stood up and walked out of the fire escape. We all stopped what we were doing and just watched him, then James chased him out of the venue in character, the guy looked genuinely terrified. 

8 Craziest on stage experience?

We once had to stop mid-show because a toddler had walked onto the stage wanting someone to play trucks with him, you just can't say no to that. We played for a couple of minutes then continued the show.

9 What’s on your rider?

We absolutely, categorically won't perform unless we have 4 Calling Birds, 3 French Hens, 2 Turtle Doves and a Family size bag of cool original Doritos

10 How do you wind down after a show?

In Edinburgh there is no winding down after a show, there is too much going on. We tend to find a nice lager shandy tends to help ride out the adrenaline.

11 What do you love about Scotland?

 If you can name it they will fry it, we're sure we once saw someone eating fried Lego.

12 What do you like about Edinburgh?

Aside from it being a being a beautiful city, during the fringe it's the only place they ring the first orders bell before the last orders bell! In terms of shows, you can watch the worst thing you've ever seen and the best thing you've ever seen in the same day, even the same venue, it's brilliant.

13 What’s the most Scottish thing you’ve done?

We once rallied the Scottish against the English monarchy and Edward I.

14 What kind of jokes do a Scottish crowd seem to respond to?

They seem to be very receptive to the bizarre, which works for us because some of the improvising you couldn't get away with anywhere else.

15 Favourite joke?

The Pajama men had a character in their 2 man 3 musketeers show last year who was so large that he would ripple every time he moved. Watching Shenoah play him had us literally crying with laughter.

16 Favourite Scottish food/drink?

Piemaker did the greatest bacon cheese turnover we've ever eaten, they've stopped doing them now and every year I ask them to bring them back (okay we lied about not mentioning them again).

Sleeping Trees: Sci-Fi? is on at the Pleasance Courtyard until August 29.