Arianna Muñoz’s new play #EDIT is taking to the stage of Theatre Deli in London later this year. The piece explores the intersections of race, sexuality, and fandom in what Arianna describes as a “playful, chronically online” way. We caught up with her for a pixelated pint to dive into what that means and find out more about the show.

You can catch #EDIT as part SHIFT + SPACE at Theatre Deli in London from the 4th-5th April at 7:30pm (70 mins). Tickets are available through the Venue’s Online Box Office.

Jake: Hi Arianna, you describe #Edit as an explosive and ‘chronically online’ play. Tell us what you mean by that and what the audience can expect.

Arianna: #Edit is explosive in that it is very in your face – when we first meet the play’s protagonist, Kali, she projects a confident, unfiltered persona. What other girl would describe the horny comments left on her edits and her sexual exploits with equal frankenss? Indeed, the whole staging of #Edit – from Kali’s Shein-inspired outfits to the Barbie-pink lighting design to the feral fan cams and blaring hyperpop music – yanks the audience into this superficial, artificial world of online fandom in all its madness.

When writing #Edit, I took inspiration from other plays about the digital age, most notably Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner. Like Seven Methods, #Edit is immersed in today’s online culture, and anticipates that its audience is as well. #Edit is a play by and for the chronically online, ie the girlies who scroll on TikTok until 3am, fangirl over all the celeb it-boys, want to buy Margiela tabis, and preach about embracing their feminine energy.

Jake: The piece examines the intersections of race, sexuality, and heteronormativity – what inspired you to explore those themes and what have you found at the point where they all meet?

Arianna: At its earliest stages #Edit was simply a play about online fandom, in all its weird and wonderful horniness. However, the Challengers summer brought with it a score of editorial takes on the ‘hot rodent boyfriend’ and ‘white boy of the month’; I am a queer Latina, and yet my social media was inundated with adoring videos of Josh O’Connor, Paul Mescal, etc. At some point I began to feel uncomfortable with this – if the social media algorithm feeds us what we supposedly want, what does it mean that a key part of my identity is not present? This in turn prompted the questions that now make the emotional narrative of the play: what if a queer, global majority woman was obsessed with having a white, it-boy celebrity boyfriend? What are the insecurities and personal experiences that convince us a certain partnership is the only way to prove our worth to society at large?

What I have found at the point where they meet is a fascinating and frustrating insight into the ways we continue to be fed a certain ideal; especially in a world where people are increasingly claiming that there is no need for inclusion or diversity, acknowledging that internalised racism, homphobia, and comp-het exists is essential.

Jake: What are you hoping the audience might take away from the experience, if anything?

Arianna: First, #Edit is a very silly show. It embraces the insanity of online fandom – our preshow features an endless scroll of real TikTok edits, which gets the audience laughing even before the lights go up (the Captain von Trapp edit to ‘Big Dawgs’ is a particular favourite). I want the audience to enjoy themselves, to laugh alongside Kali as she draws us into her obsessive, niche world.

Yet despite #Edit being filled with videos of Jacob Elordi’s gorgeous face and Tom Holland’s (surprisingly?) ripped torso, I think #Edit is still a play that has a lot of emotional resonance, one that people – especially queer people and people in the global majority – can relate to. Even as they laugh and smile, I’d like audiences to leave thinking about society’s relationships with sexuality and race; why do we feel pressured to conform to a certain relationship ideal? Why might we feel anxiety towards expressing romantic desire towards certain people in our lives? And how does the content we consume online influence these insecurities or desires?

Jake: Tell us about your relationship with the cast and crew of the show, and how the show has developed into being performed at the Hope Theatre.

Arianna: I want to give particular attention to Fatima Abdullahi and Naphysa Awuah, who play Kali and Alex, respectively. I initially wrote Kali as a Latina character, based on my own Mexican-American heritage; however, when it came time to cast it became obvious that Fatima was the perfect actor to bring Kali’s combination of playfulness and vulnerability to life. Fatima consequently brought her own Somali heritage to the role, in addition to adding a new dynamic to Kali and Alex’s relationship, as both characters were now queer, dark-skinned black women. In rehearsals, we were able to have some really insightful conversations about race/blackness and sexuality, something that I think has brought a further beauty and complexity to #Edit that I could not have achieved alone.

As to the play’s development, I am incredibly fortunate that Laurel and Toby (Artistic Directors of The Hope), saw the play’s potential at such an early stage and were enthusiastic about bringing it to the Hope during the theatre’s Write Club festival. From that, it has now been programmed at Theatre Deli as part of their Shift/Space season, an opportunity to continue developing #Edit and share it with new audiences that I am very excited about.

Jake: Given the themes of Binge Fringe, if your show was a beverage of any kind (alcoholic, non-alcoholic – be as creative as you like!), what would it be and why?

Arianna: One of those strawberry daiquiri cocktail tins – sickly sweet and pleasingly pink, they’re always the start of a crazy and unforgettable night out xx

You can catch #EDIT as part SHIFT + SPACE at Theatre Deli in London from the 4th-5th April at 7:30pm (70 mins). Tickets are available through the Venue’s Online Box Office.

Image Credit: Tanya Pabaru