About Róisín and Chiara
Devastatingly original character comedy duo Róisín and Chiara are ‘a pair of improvising geniuses’ and Ones to Watch (Funny Women 2016). Profiled in Vice Magazine as one of the female duos redefining live comedy, this two-woman tour de force connect in a tapestry of irresistibly well observed and hilarious character vignettes that are playful, kitsch and surreal.
With a background in physical theatre, the pair formed in 2012 creating their own style of stand up with a mixture of highly precise choreographed delivery, surreal tangents and daring audience interaction. Their 2016 debut Edinburgh show Wild At Heart received four and five-star reviews and the duo soon followed up their success with a new show “We are Not Afraid” for 2017.
As well as gigging around London, in the regions and at festivals, this talented twosome run a monthly comedy residency – ‘Charmy Swine’ – at London’s Aces and Eights comedy club. Both also accomplished actresses, Róisín and Chiara recently played monsters in ITV’s ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ and are currently touring Europe with new show ‘Generation Why’. Róisín and Chiara have also recently being commissioned by the BBC to make a hilarious short all about the magic of Jazz.
Watch Róisín and Chiara: Back to Back
Call it stream-of-consciousness, messy art-house disco funk comedy. A two-woman character sketch comedy and clowning bonanza. Gal pals Ro’ and Chi’ guarantee a kaleidoscopic adventure of surreal proportions. Lightning-paced, rhapsodic storytelling told in uncanny synchronicity, this dynamic duo bring to life a plethora of irresistibly well-observed character vignettes unlike anything else on the scene.
Reviews and Awards
‘Beautifully silly’
The Sunday Times
‘The Mighty Boosh on acid’
Broadway Baby
‘Sensual, spiritual, baffling, staggering… hilariously unpredictable’
ThreeWeeks
‘Universes of fun’
The Skinny
‘They bring a unique brand of bonkers…psychotically intense energy…this pair have got mischief in them’
Chortle
Róisín and Chiara Tickets
You can find details and tickets for upcoming Róisín and Chiara shows here.
Want to catch them before that? Stream their full show live
Bio
With Róisín’s Irish background, Chiara partly growing up in Italy, and both ladies pursuing a training rooted in teachings of french mime innovator Jacque Le Coq, there’s certainly something freshly European and original about this perfect pair. However it was at University in London where Chiara met Róisín’s brother who, convinced they’d hit it off, introduced her to his sister Róisín. The rest, as they say, is history.
Chiara tells The Bedford Clanger: “We got on as friends really first and foremost, we just seem to really click, we felt really in balance with one another on stage; that we complement one another and can keep each-other at our best. It feels like we’re connected really symbiotic, we hang out loads, like all the time, I basically live at her house. We’re very much like sisters, that’s like a total blessing to find someone that you work well with, we know that it’s rare.”
And what are their influences? “We grew up with Smack The Pony, Absolutely Fabulous, 90’s comedy. I grew up in Italy and was influenced by a lot of character comedians. We enjoyed being together on stage, we had a similar sense of humour, Róisín is more surreal in her writing and coming up with ideas, I’m more character based, together we mix that. We enjoy having a character, say like the posh girls, we really enjoy Made In Chelsea and all of those kind of things and putting a surreal twist on it, we really enjoy Noel Fielding, The Mighty Boosh, The League of Gentleman, all of those shows where it’s character comedy with a surreal twist and it’s really exaggerated with a grotesque twist, like character comedy but surreal, those are our inspirations I guess.”
So with hit Edinburgh Fringe show’s Wild at Heart, Back to Back and We Are Not Afraid under their belts, what’s next?As well shooting a BBC3 Quickie with comedy diva Alice Marshall, these laugh inducing ladies have recently teamed up with funny man Tom Ward on his new podcast series ‘People Talk’ and are currently on tour all over Spain with Award winning Teatro EnVilo and their co-devised show “Generation Why”, fresh from winning first prize at the ‘Presente Futuro’ Theatre Festival Palermo, Italy.