Madonna/Whore
2022-present
Studio photos by Karla Gowlett
Madonna/Whore was my debut show as a solo artist.
I began working on the show in 2022, after having graduated from university in 2021 and started to feel an itch to Make Something. You can read all about the creative process in my new blog series, Making Madonna/Whore.
Madonna/Whore was first performed as a work-in-progress at Brighton Fringe 2022 at The Rotunda. It sold out all dates and we ended up adding an extra one due to demand. I was floored by the response.
After having been picked up by FemFest as one of their 2022-23 Early Career Artists, I performed the show again as a work-in-progress at FemFest 2023. This is when I met my Director, Annie North, and we have been working together ever since.
I performed the show - not as a work-in-progress - at Brighton Fringe 2023 at The Actors. It once again sold out all dates with an extra one being added due to demand. It also won the Lamb Queer Comedy Award and the Brighton Seagull Award for “Best Concept”, and The Actors scooped up the Audience Choice Award for Best Venue too. What a year!
Madonna/Whore was performed once again at Brighton Fringe 2024 at Komedia, this time as a “finished” show, and won the Pebble Trust International Touring Award, facilitating the touring of the show to an international festival. Madonna/Whore made its debut at Edinburgh Fringe in August 2024 to acclaim and plenty of happy audiences, including three sold-out shows.
I am currently in the process of organising an international tour for 2025, after which Madonna/Whore will be put to bed for me to focus on other projects. If you have a venue or festival which would like to host the show, please get in touch at selenamersey@gmail.com.
PR
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The Reviews Hub (Brighton Fringe 2023) ★★★★★
The List (Edinburgh Fringe 2024) ★★★★
Broadway Baby (WIP, Brighton Fringe 2022) ★★★★
Funny Women (Edinburgh Fringe 2024)
Brighton Seagull (Brighton Fringe 2023)
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Pebble Trust International Touring Award (Brighton Fringe 2024)
Keep It Fringe Fund (Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2024)
Lamb Queer Comedy Award (Brighton Fringe 2023)
Brighton Seagull Award for "Best Concept" (Brighton Fringe 2023)
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Audience reaction video - Edinburgh Fringe 2024
Quotes from audience members on the 2023 feedback form:
I WANT MORE !!!!!! So creative funny and talented !
Unbelievably catchy music, poignant and hilarious lyrics. A comedic burlesque performance that equally funny and sensual. I’ll be eating toast for weeks!
Fabulous show! Silly and thought provoking!
This queer comedy experience made my chest hurt I was laughing so much. Consistent laughs and mixed in with heartfelt stories that chaotically transition to songs. Perfectly balanced as all things should be !
The audience was laughing continuously, Selena certainly does know how to captivate and entertain. A fringe essential! *****
Bread burlesque ....took my breath away ...sorry boyfriend but what a gorgeous bum . Good night all round 💯❤️🌈
Madonna/Whore was top notch from start to finish. A laugh out loud comedy mixed with music, burlesque, observations on life and society in general. There were some real sentimental and thought provoking moments. Tremendously thought out and a real joy to watch!
I watched probably around 30 acts , and I enjoyed yours the most 😊
Such a well- constructed and entertaining show! By the end of the show you really feel like you’ve all been on a journey with Selena.
I'm not sure if this is a weird thing to say, but I felt safe with you, I had no idea where you would take us through the show but I trusted you.
I would watch this show again in a heartbeat, it was clever and funny and touching and I loved it.
The songs are catchy, hilariously funny!
Your smile and positive vibe was very welcome and made the show!
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Available here
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Available here
Live photos by deadplantzfilmandphotography
Meet the Team
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Selena Mersey
WRITER, PERFORMER, AND PRODUCER
Selena Mersey is a Brighton-based musical comedian, burlesque artist, and theatre maker originally from Liverpool. A rising star on the UK's cabaret scene, she has performed in the finals of the Musical Comedy Awards, graced the stage of Europe’s most prestigious burlesque competition ‘Burlesque Idol’, been featured on the UK’s premier comedy streaming platform NextUp, and made a splash on TikTok with over 3 million views. Madonna/Whore is Selena’s multi-award-winning debut production as a solo writer-performer, and Biesxuelle is the hotly anticipated follow-up show. She is also a member of award-winning queer feminist theatre collective Clap Back Club and has featured as a recurring guest in musical satire sketch outfit The Treason Show.
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Annie North
DIRECTOR
Annie North is a Brighton-based theatre maker who believes in the radical power of collaboration. She started with Clap Back Club, a feminist theatre collective made up of multidisciplinary artists whose loud and proud politically engaged comedy-come-musical shows have earned them a cult following on the fringe scene. With Clap Back Club, she has won two Audience Choice awards (2018 & 2019) and the FUSE International Comedy Award for Retrain, Reduce, Recycle in 2022. Annie’s other directing work includes TrueStory Theatre Company and A Trans Fairytale, Brighton Fringe 2022. Annie is also a producer of FemFest, Brighton's only fringe festival that platforms and showcases the work of women, trans and NB artists.
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Daniel Wakeling
STAGE MANAGER, SOUND TECHNICIAN, AND ASSISTANT WRITER
Daniel Wakeling is a non-binary Brighton-based comedian, satirical writer, and theatre crew professional. They perform on the local Brighton circuit and work as a Writer and Assistant Stage Manager with Brighton’s longest running political sketch show, The Treason Show. They also contribute material to award-winning queer feminist theatre collective Clap Back Club. Daniel was a semi-finalist in the 2022 run of prestigious Edinburgh Fringe competition So You Think You're Funny and their material has been performed at the 2023 conference of the UK’s Green Party.
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Abbie Bryans
ARRANGER
Abbie Bryans is a composer, arranger and multi-instrumentalist from South East London. As well as playing every woodwind instrument ever known, they are a keen MT actress and perform regularly in AmDram productions. She studied Music at the University of Sussex and spends most of her time teaching kids to resist the temptation of the DJ button.
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Special thanks
With special thanks to Bebe Boheme for choreographic mentoring.