Have you tried just being brave, or whatever?

Alice-India (2Northdown New Act of the Year Finalist 2021) is looking for a new best ever friend forever.

Alice, the friendly face of mental illness and all round delightful little pain in the butt, will break your heart in to a million pieces (in a good way lol) and show you how simple it is to just be brave, or whatever we get it stop going on oh my god.

August 22, 2022    The Skinny

Performing in a glorified broom closet, Alice-India has no choice but to engage extensively with the crowd. That might seem counterintuitive, but it makes perfect sense – she interacts with us so often and in such a friendly manner that you feel as though you’re listening to a kindly acquaintance tell a story while you rest your legs. That’s not to put you off, though – India sets you at ease.

The other reason India has to get to know her audience is that the premise of her show Be Brave (Or Whatever) is to make new friends (she tells us she only has three, two of whom are her mother and her boyfriend; we find that hard to believe given how personable and exuberant she is). She asks us thoughtful and sometimes tricky questions about our relationships: who are our best friends? What do we look for in a friend? The show even culminates in a “friend wedding” to one lucky member of the audience which, although fun and silly, is somewhat messy given the size of the room.

Alice's crowdwork dominates the set, which is great because that’s where she really shines. She manages to make engaging and witty content from it, without ever really picking on us or making us uncomfortable. The furthest she pushes it is in a brilliant section where she asks various audience members whether they like her, and if so, what specifically they like (we quickly learn that she will not accept ‘hair’ as a valid answer).

India’s search for intimacy in an audience might just prove successful (even if it was only set up in jest). She builds rapport quickly, is charming and willing to indulge us in our fancies (even if our fancy is for her to leave the room again in order to perform a proper walk-on). It feels relaxed and easy, and she wins our hearts with remarkable charm. Click Here For Review

August 18, 2022    The Scotsman

Performing in one of the boxiest rooms at the festival, the intimacy suits Alice-India's candid, confessional style. With the avowed aim of making friends, she gently probes the audience even as she unloads her own insecurities and issues. A former school teacher with no great love for children, she was signed off unwell a month into the academic year and chronicles a string of depressive symptoms, though her diagnosis remains unclear.

She may be autistic she ventures but doesn't allow herself to be confined by this possibility. And in truth, she's more defined by her bisexuality and that of her caring boyfriend's, with her very much wearing the trousers and the phallic supremacy in their relationship.

Some of her material grasps towards gratuitousness, a bit about incestuous dreams presented as if it's relatable. But this seems less taboo-busting than an attempt to be distinctive, the young stand-up still trying to find her voice to an extent, exemplified when she quotes another comedian's account of their sexual awakening as being akin to her own. No great matter though, because she's a perky, engaging presence, despite her troubles, and shows glimpses of ambition and potential. Jay Richardson