Artist Q&A with Oslo Fringe Artist Amica Hunter

Artist: Amica Huner (they/them), Mount Vernon, Washington, USA

Show: ANATOMICA - A Comedy About Meat, Bones, & The Skin You’re In

International Comedian & Weird-Lil’-Gremlin, Amica Hunter, GETS UNDER YOUR SKIN and CRUSHES YOUR FUNNY BONE in this hilarious, captivating, and sometimes-unsettling-comedy about skeletons. Part stand-up, part storytelling, and part clown, ANATOMICA investigates the advantages and inadequacies of different animals, and celebrates the absurdity of being trapped inside a body that is limited by pain, fatigue, and ultimately decay. But, you know, make it fun! The show features a guided meditation from the perspective of a worm, a slew of scientific facts about a variety of animals, and a “butt-faced” crab. A gloriously deranged Ted-Talk by a wanna-be scientist who dropped out of college to go to clown school.

WINNER: Artists' Pick, Cincinnati Fringe 2023

★★★★★ “An hour of chewy, fleshy charm” -The Edmonton Journal

What drew you to performing at the Oslo Fringe?

I've wanted to visit Scandinavia for so long! I applied to the Baltic-Nordic fringe circuit a few years back, and was thrilled when I got into several of them (they're curated), but didn’t have time or funds to make it work in time. As an American and a struggling artist at that, it's a really long way to go and quite an expense just for one weekend-long festival, but the Oslo Festival kindly gave me a deferral so that I could return a year later once I had had some time to save money for my tickets. I'm really looking forward to the experience, and while it definitely won't be one that necessarily helps me eat or pay rent, I'm hoping that it will feed and pay the rent on my soul, so to speak, LOL. But seriously, visiting at all is a dream come true, and I can’t wait to meet other like-minded artists and see incredible work from that region and beyond. Also, my mother is going to come along for the trip so that we can do some sightseeing and traveling abroad together, which will be fun - I have actually talked her into being my technician for the festival, since I could not afford to bring a hired hand along with me. So that will be a fun bonding experience as well.

What made you want to create ANATOMICA?

I had been working the same collaborative partner for about 10 years as clown duo "A Little Bit Off", and when we decided to focus on things other than making new shows together, I figured it was time for me to make a solo show, which I honestly wasn't really looking forward to, because as a clown I loved having a partner on stage to play with. I also wanted to see what it would be like to perform as myself instead of as a character, in a talking-on-mic type of way. I had gotten a lot of feedback about having stand-up comedy potential, and I wanted to explore that, but felt very intimidated and turned off by traditional stand-up comedy scenes. So really it was an experiment to check these things off of my creator performer bucket list. As for the content of the show, I really just followed the thread of what I was most interested in at the time - wierd and interesting animal facts - and it slowly morphed into something else. I didn’t intend to make a personal show, especially a vulnerable one, but my perspective ended up being the actual core of the show.

What made you want to explore a show about bodies (human and other)?

Well, we've all got them. I am somebody who is very aware of existing within a body, and how that affects everything in my life - sometimes in a good and fun way, and sometimes in an unpleasant way, but always in an interesting way. When I was in high school, I somehow got clearance to go on a field trip to the cadaver lab with the anatomy students, even though I wasn't taking the class myself. It was a really intense and fascinating experience! I was sort of squeamish and nauseous the whole time, but it was also just so mind-blowingly awe-inspiring to me. I got to hold up a big sheet of torso skin, and feel how HEAVY it was, and I remember that it reminded me of the lead aprons they put on you for Xrays at the dentist… But don’t get freaked out; the show is not macabre like that at all, and the actual reason why I start talking about animal biology is embedded into the plot of the show, so I’ll let you come find out. Basically, the only way we'll ever be able to experience the world is through the sensory and chemical feedback of having a body - it's literally the only thing going on for most creatures… But it’s hard not to compare. Would the grass be greener in a different one?

You have a fantastic costume; how do you find audiences respond to the costume, particularly those potential audience members who are squeamish yet adventurous?

I assume you mean my worm costume! People love it! I get a lot of people asking about how it was constructed, and wanting to see it up close or touch it after the show. It’s all fabric and not slimey or anything, so I’ve never had anyone be squeamish about it. Around the time that I was working hard to craft this costume, Heidi Klum made her runway debut in a worm suit, and I was so mad because I had already been working on the idea and felt upstaged, haha. I’ve actually added to it and rebuilt it several times since I took my initial photos (I have to fully deconstruct and resew it to wash the outer fabric). It now has those classic wormy segmented stripes along the body as well. Before the stripes, it was somewhat ambiguous, and people sometimes assume I am an intestine (or in the words of one Winnipeg patron "I've seen your poster. You're the big pink sh*t, right?”). I use the worm costume photos for my promo even though I don't wear it for the majority of the show, because it's such a striking image, and frankly because it took me a really long time to make, so I'm proud of it. However, it's not the only wild costume in the show! I don't want to give it away, but my initial costume is perhaps even more awkward and unusual. All I'll say is that when you see the show, know that each and every leg hair was hand sewn on and knotted by yours truly.

What makes ANATOMICA special?

ANATOMICA really is a genre blender that's hard to categorize or describe. That makes it tough to market, but it also makes it all the more unique to experience. There is a fun surprise reveal in the show that I won't go into for the sake of spoilers, but beyond that, there is something I love about performing this show that I normally admit: I like getting the audience to feel a little uneasy with the level of weirdness, and then pulling back from that edge and reassuring them with some more relatable stuff. Especially early on, I like to make people wonder if this is going to be a BAD show that is hard to sit through - get people questioning their decision to come. Then I win them over and watch that ice melt in real time as they get onboard and get into it. Is it necessary for the show? No. But I am obsessed with that initial appraisal where the performer and the audience are sizing each other up and trying to decide how the show is going to go down. It’s what live shows can do that Netflix can’t - build and release that tension in a way that can only happen in a room full of actual breathing, chuckling, thinking people.

What do you hope audiences will leave with after seeing ANATOMICA?

Talking about animal bodies and behaviors has always been a "special interest of mine” - it's the one thing that can really get me talking excitably, even in a setting where I'm not feeling very social, so I want to spread that genuine thrill and excitement that I feel when I get to nerd out about, oh I don’t know, the recent discovery of the snake clitoris, for example. Also, I want people to leave the theatre with the kind of questions that are ungoogleable - the kind you HAVE to talk about, and get different perspectives on, and there's no one real answer to. I’ve always loved “would you rather” questions, and getting people talking and using their imaginations to philosophize and debate about different hypothetical states of being feels like a major win for me. And I KNOW that this show sparks a lot of conversation and further questions in the car ride home, because I frequently get messages from strangers who see the show and just HAVE to tell me about their discussions with partners/friends afterward.

What is the one thing you cannot fringe without?

The one thing I cannot Fringe without is probably the little foam roller that I carry around on my backpack. Honestly, I can't get through any day without that thing, and I have to have it in case I need to stop, drop, and roll to relieve a little bit of my body pain - I use it to crack my back several times a day. I'm one of those performers that loves being on stage, but outside of that is somewhat of an introvert, not to mention a major sleepyhead. I would pretty much always rather be lying on the floor in a quiet house than yelling across a sticky table at some bar. I think the other Achey Breaky Beautiful Covergirls see my roller and get the signal- it helps me find the other overstimulated freaks who would rather be snoozing. Bedtime is the best time!

---

Amica is performing ANATOMICA at the 2026 Oslo Fringe Festival! September 9-13. Get tickets HERE.

Learn more about Amica on their website: www.amicahunter.com

Keep up with Amica on Socials:

IG: @meatymeekers

FB: @AmicaHunter