Villain Era is the debut multimedia comedy show by actor, playwright and producer Star Stone with direction from Ryan Cunningham.
Star shares her outrageous true story of going viral online and becoming an internet ‘villain’ to millions. Her life changes overnight, facing a barrage of harassment, ranging from hateful messages to literal death threats.
Sharing her wild autobiographical story publicly for the first time, Star reveals it all from battling bots, trolls, the online vegan mafia, and the real effects it had on her, in this one-woman multimedia comedy show. She tells us what it’s like to be taking the show to Edinburgh.
Q&A with Star Stone
How does it feel to be returning to Edinburgh Fringe?
Last year I brought a piece I had developed in Los Angeles and it had been almost 6 years since its opening night (and with Covid it lost momentum for 2-3 years). It was great to rework the piece and present it at Fringe. This year I am bringing brand new work that is receiving a premiere at Fringe and I am looking forward to how audiences will inform this piece and looking forward to the process of allowing it to grow and develop!
What can you tell us about your show and its inspiration?
Villain Era is my true story of participating in an online competition show called Vegans versus meat eaters, that went viral with 17 million views and I received the villain edit by production. This created a backlash of online harassment and cyberbullying for 5 years! I was crowned an insufferable and annoying vegan by the internet comment sections and received threats. But, in this comedy show I tell my story, spill the tea, and address the effects all of this had on me. The intention with the show is to point to the larger effects social media has on our mental health, the mob mentality existing online, and address cancel culture.
How do you think audiences will react to the show?
Our preview in NYC showed me that the audience is shocked at my story and has empathy, and a lot of people relate. We don’t realize that violent behaviour on social media is equivalent to an in-person offense. In fact, there is almost an assumption that if it happens online, then it doesn’t have real-world consequences, but anyone who has been cancelled, or experienced violence online, will absolutely tell you that’s simply not true. We need to start having accountability for what is said and done online.
We have all become critiques and surveyors- and I think we need to address this on a global scale.
How have you been preparing for the festival?
Villain Era is in previews with East to Edinburgh at 59E59 in NYC. This is giving us great information to prep for the month in Edinburgh.
Do you have any Fringe anecdotes you can share with us?
Last year I met Phoebe Waller-Bridge and saw some work by truly incredible and brave storytellers!
