Divine comedy: fringe standups turn to religion for inspiration

When Sam Williams first used the word “Christianity” in his standup routine at comedy clubs, he said audiences would freeze. He felt “the weight of that word”.

But when he takes his new show to the Edinburgh fringe this summer, he will be one of a growing number of comedians mining religion for laughs – and he thinks the audience is ready.

“This is the beginning of a major movement,” he said. “I genuinely feel the kind of show I’m making will be a cliché in four years’ time.”

Williams’s one-hour show, Touch Me Not, is about Christianity, his discovery of his faith in his mid-20s and how it “facilitated my acceptance and loving of my own queerness”.

Williams, who was raised as an atheist, had been contemplating Christianity for years, but only recently started attending church and was baptised. He initially feared that his bisexuality and gender fluidity would not be welcomed, but has discovered more progressive, welcoming churches.

A survey by the Bible Society earlier this year found that among 18- to 24-year-olds, the proportion who said they went to church at least once a month had risen from 4% in 2018 to 16%, although there has been scepticism about this supposed boom.

Actor Bebe Cave is exploring the idea that more young people may be turning to religion in her show, Christbride, through the story of a medieval girl called Batilda.

She is fascinated by the alternative lifestyles religion offered women at the time: mystics having ecstatic visions and nuns accessing education. If more young people are embracing religion, Cave said she not surprised: “I wonder if it’s partly because of how isolating technology is… young people romanticise a simple life.”

Social media invites constant comparison and obsession with appearance and achievements, according to Cave. “Religion wasn’t about you – it was about loving something bigger. We crave this idea you could forget yourself for just a second,” she said.

Theatre-maker Sergio Antonio Maggiolo agreed. “A lot of people are craving meaning. We live in a world where real human connection and interaction is rare,” he said.

He will perform his new show, Jeezus!, at Edinburgh this year. The musical romcom is based on his experiences growing up Catholic and queer in South America.

Maggiolo’s relationship with religion today is complex: “I was raised Catholic – those stories, symbols and myths are part of me,” he said. “I’m finding my own spirituality with what I have.”

Williams and Maggiolo hope audiences will be inspired by their shows to shape their spirituality. “What I try to make in my work is this sense of communion and empathy,” added  Maggiolo.