Conspiracies, clowning and a giant puppet: Xhloe and Natasha prepare to unleash Bigfoot on Edinburgh

When Xhloe Rice and Natasha Roland first arrived at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2022, they were two performers from New York bringing their work across the Atlantic, largely unknown outside their own circles, stepping into a festival they had heard about but barely understood. They did not know how audiences would respond, whether the work would connect, or just how transformative that first Edinburgh experience would become.

Now, after becoming one of the most distinctive and celebrated performance duos on the Fringe circuit, including three consecutive Fringe First Awards in 2022, 2023 and 2024, they return to Edinburgh with their most ambitious production yet: Bigfoot Ripped My Dog In Half I Saw It.

Trying to explain exactly what Xhloe and Natasha do is not always straightforward. Their work sits somewhere between clowning, physical theatre, absurdism and storytelling, combining moments of complete silliness with emotional and thought-provoking themes.

“When we're trying to describe what we do to someone who's completely uninitiated, and maybe even unfamiliar with theatre, we say that what we do is kind of silly physical theatre that packs an emotional punch,” says Xhloe.

“But if it's a theatre person, we love to talk about clown influences, absurdism, physical theatre, and American identity that all packs an emotional punch.”

For Natasha, though, there is a limit to how much their work can be explained.

“It’s something that you almost have to see to understand,” she says.

“A lot of the time we're just telling people, ‘Trust us, you're going to like it.’ You just have to come and see it, and you have to bear witness to it. There’s a certain liveness that you just have to experience to really understand it.”

That sense of discovery has been central to their relationship with Edinburgh.

Their first Fringe was filled with uncertainty and firsts. It was Xhloe’s first leaving the United States and her experience staying in a hostel, and both performers were entering a festival environment they knew almost nothing about.

“We knew so little,” recalls Xhloe.

“We were so naïve about how the Fringe even worked. We'd heard about flyering, but we'd never seen it in action. We'd heard of the Royal Mile but never experienced it.”

At that stage, their audiences were mostly made up of people who already knew them.

“We were mostly performing for friends and family back in New York,” says Xhloe.
 
Then came a moment that would become symbolic of their entire Fringe journey: strangers taking a chance on their work.

A group of students from the United States attended one of their early performances, giving the pair an audience beyond their own personal networks.

“There were around ten of them, so suddenly we had ten audience members we didn't know,” says Xhloe.

“Afterwards they were all posting on social media about how much they'd enjoyed the show, and that was completely new for us.”

Those early supporters have remained part of the story.

“Sometimes those same students come back to the Fringe and tell us, ‘I was at your first performance of Rodeo,’ or ‘I was at your second performance before anyone had ever really seen it,’” says Xhloe.

“We feel like we have a special bond with them.”

For Natasha, those first audiences represent something important about the Fringe itself.

“It’s about never forgetting those first people who took a chance on our show,” she says.

Their first Fringe also delivered another milestone: their first ever review.

“We never forget Katie Hawthorne either,” says Natasha.
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“She was the first person who ever reviewed our work. Not just that show, the first review we'd ever received in our careers happened in Edinburgh.”

The momentum from that first appearance grew quickly. After winning their first Fringe First Award, everything changed almost immediately.

“We are so spoiled because those early days with the small crowds really only lasted for the first five to seven days of our first Fringe,” says Xhloe.

“Then we won our first Fringe First Award, and within about two hours we'd sold out.”

The recognition brought validation, but it also introduced a new level of pressure.

“There was definitely a level of validation that came with it,” says Natasha.

“We'd already had validation from audiences because we'd realised that people we didn't know could genuinely enjoy our work.”

“But with the Fringe First Award, there was something different about being recognised by people whose job it is to watch and critique theatre. That gave us even more validation than we'd ever had before.”
 
For Xhloe, success also came with a new awareness of expectations.

“Every time we've won an award, whether it's been at the Fringe or more recently here in New York, it ratchets everything up another level,” she says.

“You realise people are taking you seriously. You become more aware of what your profile is, whether that's in the Fringe world or the wider theatre world.”

But alongside that excitement came something many artists experience when success arrives unexpectedly.

“At the same time, though, the pressure increases,” says Xhloe.

“That’s when the imposter syndrome starts creeping in. You think, ‘Oh my gosh, this is actually happening.’ It can feel overwhelming, but obviously we wouldn't have it any other way. We're incredibly grateful for it.”

Their relationship with the Fringe has never been without challenges. Last year, the pair attempted something few performers would even consider: performing a triple bill of their Fringe First Award winning shows with two performances a day for a month of And Then The Rodeo Burned Down, What If They Ate The Baby? and A Letter To Lyndon B Johnson or God

The triple bill became a celebration of their journey, bringing together audiences who had followed them from the beginning alongside those discovering them for the first time.

However, the reality of making it happen was intense.

“Honestly, I don't think it's something we'd ever do again,” admits Natasha.

“It took so much out of us emotionally and physically. There was so much work involved, and logistically it was incredibly demanding.”

Despite that, Xhloe still sees it as one of their most memorable Fringe experiences.

“It really was a great idea, though, and we're so glad we did it because it felt like a celebration with our Fringe audiences, both the people who'd been following us for years and those discovering us for the first time.”

The difference this year is that the pair are returning with something entirely new and they are facing the pressure of a world premiere again.

“Last year there was comfort because all three shows already existed,” says Natasha.
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“We knew them inside out. Now we're bringing a fourth world premiere to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and we know people are going to have expectations.”

Those expectations sit behind their new production, Bigfoot Ripped My Dog In Half I Saw It.

Set in Appalachia in the late 1990s, the show follows two teenagers who create fake Bigfoot sightings in their community, only for the hoax to spiral into something far beyond their control.

“The two teenagers begin faking Bigfoot sightings around the town,” explains Xhloe.

“The hoax catches on incredibly quickly and soon gets completely out of hand.”

Eventually, the pair decide they need to admit the truth.

“But just as they're about to come clean, they discover their neighbour's dog ripped in half in the woods,” says Xhloe.

“They look at each other and realise neither of them did it. Something much bigger is happening.”

While the title may suggest an outrageous comedy premise, the ideas underneath the show explore much bigger questions around information, belief and trust.

“We're really interested in ideas around misinformation and misdirection,” says Xhloe.

“It’s that feeling of, ‘Look over here so you don't notice what's happening over there.’”

For Natasha, the subject feels particularly relevant.

“Especially living in America right now, it feels like we're constantly being flooded with information and media, and it can be difficult to know what deserves your attention.”

The production also explores conspiracy culture, mistrust and communities searching for answers.
“We're also interested in conspiracy culture and this wider culture of doubt,” says Xhloe.

“There’s mistrust of government, mistrust of law enforcement, mistrust of information, and even mistrust of each other.”

One of the biggest new elements in the show is a giant puppet, another first for the pair.

“It takes both of us to operate it,” says Xhloe.

“We've never used puppetry before, so this is another huge first for us.”

Creating a new show from scratch has been a demanding process, particularly because Bigfoot represents one of their most plot-driven productions to date.
 
“We always say that we're wrestling with the play,” says Xhloe.

“That’s exactly what it feels like. Sometimes the play gets the upper hand, and sometimes we do.”

The process involves constant rewriting, experimentation and adjustment.

“We're constantly crossing things out, changing dialogue, sitting down to rewrite scenes, swapping pages, then getting back on our feet to try it again.”

Natasha says the difference with this production has been the amount of work required before they even reached rehearsals.

“I also think Bigfoot is probably the most plot-driven of all our plays,” she says.

“Our previous work has often been more absurd in terms of the worlds we've created, whereas this one has a stronger narrative structure.”

Their success in Edinburgh has also started changing how they are viewed back home in America.

After years of building their reputation in New York, they found themselves returning from Edinburgh with recognition that did not immediately translate.

“We came back to America and still found ourselves having to explain what that recognition meant,” says Xhloe.

“We were still trying to convince people to pay attention to what we were doing.”

That has started to change.

“Over the past year, though, it's been really exciting to start receiving recognition here as well,” she says.

For all their success, Edinburgh remains central to who they are as artists.

This year sees them move from The Space UK, the venue that has been their Fringe home, to Summerhall.

“The Space UK is really all we've ever known,” says Xhloe.

“They've been so great for us and so supportive throughout our Fringe journey.”

The move brings excitement, but also uncertainty.

“There is an expectation that comes with Summerhall, and we're trying to be aware of that without letting it define us,” she says.

Ultimately, their focus remains on creating work that connects with audiences.

Even if that means missing out on much of the traditional Fringe experience.

“We don't see very many shows. When we have downtime, we're usually lying down,” says Natasha.

Their physically demanding performances require a huge amount of preparation and recovery.

“The reason we're able to perform the way we do every evening is because we don't really get to experience the social side of the Fringe,” says Xhloe.

“We'd love to. We always talk about coming back one year without a show, just to spend the whole month seeing theatre.”

After Edinburgh, the pair want their productions to continue growing beyond the traditional Fringe format.

“All of our plays are bigger than just being Fringe shows,” says Natasha.

“We want them to continue living and growing beyond Edinburgh.”

Their recent New York run of And Then the Rodeo Burned Down has shown them what their work can become with more time and resources.

“We've had the opportunity to expand the show beyond 60 minutes,” says Xhloe.

“We've had a permanent set, a full design team and a producing team supporting us.”

That experience has opened their eyes to what comes next.

“Our goal is to start taking these shows that people have come to know as ‘Fringe shows’ and explore what their lives could look like with more resources behind them.”

Before any future plans, though, there is one thing they are looking forward to.

A rest.

“We’d quite like to have a little bit of a break,” says Natasha.

“October, I think, is going to be spent unconscious for most of the month.”

And after years of wrestling with plays, audiences and expectations, perhaps that break is well deserved.

Click Here To Book Tickets: Bigfoot Ripped My Dog In Half I Saw It 
August 6-30th 2026 - 2110 at Summerhall 

Lee Hutchison