Voices from the Fringe: Mandy Rubeli

When last we spoke with Mandy Rubeli, cats were going to hell. This time, a dinosaur is running amok in a character’s psyche in Dinosaurs. Written by and co-starring Ms. Rubeli, the play takes on some heady topics while keeping things delightfully off-kilter.

Originally performed at HFF24, Dinosaurs is being fine-tuned with some encore performances prior to heading to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Here’s what Ms. Rubeli had to say to ArtsBeat LA about the show.

ArtsBeat LA: What inspired you to write this particular piece?

Mandy Rubeli: Dinosaurs is a personal piece very loosely reflecting true events from my life, but most of the story grew from my imagination. I was interested in exploring the emotional truth behind those experiences, rather than recreating them exactly as they happened (except for the real-life dinosaur, that happened, obviously). 

Ha! What’s the message it delivers to audiences?

My hope is that through exploring the strange ways trauma traps us in the past, and what it really means to move forward, audiences leave with a deeper understanding of how trauma impacts ourselves and those around us. The show is an existential comedy that seamlessly weaves absurd, laugh-out-loud humor with a deeply moving, nuanced exploration of healing and accountability.

Through the quirky metaphor of a dinosaur, the production explores several difficult themes in a thoughtful and approachable way, and I hope it helps allow the audience to make conversations around trauma more accessible.

You and your other Nightmare Lizards troupe members have performed it a number of times. How do you all keep it fresh?

Even though we’ve performed it a number of times, it still feels fresh because the script has evolved significantly since we last staged it. My new revisions have given us plenty of new material to explore. Beyond that, every audience brings a different energy, which keeps each performance unique. We also continue exploring our characters and relationships, so there’s always something new to discover. 

We know you’re a Hollywood Fringe veteran…

Technically no! I performed at the Fringe my senior year of high school with my theater troupe. This year is my first time producing my own show. 

How do you think it will translate to Edinburgh audiences?

I’m hoping it will translate well, as the core themes of the show are universal. The target audiences are people going through major life changes, individuals navigating grief, survivors working through past trauma, young adults figuring out their identity, people healing from difficult life experiences, and anyone who loves dinosaurs. I believe anyone can relate to the idea of something from the past lingering, and the difficulty it takes to live in the present, and therefore hope Dinosaurs translates well! 

Are there any other shows at the Hollywood Fringe currently on your radar?

I’m excited to see Vote for Tom Ryan, Coffee Date, White Lilies, and Roominate — all great friends of mine and wonderful artists.

We are all local actors and writers based in Los Angeles, so when we are not traveling, we are developing our next projects. Most recently, Faith Saporito wrote and starred in the short film BFF, which can be found on YouTube.

Dinosaurs plays June 7, 17 and 24 at the Broadwater (Second Stage), 6320 Santa Monica Blvd. Ticketing information can be found here.

The Nightmare Lizards are partnering with the Joyful Heart Foundation in support of their important work helping survivors of sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse. As part of this collaboration, they are raising funds to both support their mission and to help make the journey to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe possible. If you feel inspired to help, please consider visiting the troupe’s GoFundMe page here.