Solo Fest 2025 Spotlight: Tansu Philip’s MOST ACHIEVED PERSON
Join us for PlayGround’s eighth annual Solo Performance Festival, a curation of the best in California solo performance! The festival runs until February 9, 2025 (Fri-Sun), presented live on our stage and also simulcast online. More…
Today we’re spotlighting Tansu Philip in Most Achieved Person (2/7 at 7pm, 2/8 at 4pm, & 2/9 at 1pm). Most Achieved Person is a follow-up to Paratha, exploring familiar themes while charting new territory. In this piece, Tansu once again serves as the narrator, but instead of revisiting her Indian-American identity and travels to India, she invites you into her life over the past two years. It’s a candid and humorous look at taking on too much, burning out, and ultimately finding relief in medication. This comedy emphasizes the value of community and mental health, delivering a relatable and hilarious journey. It also features Bollywood dancing!
Hear from the playwright:
What was the seed of this play? What inspired you to write it?
Honestly, I was super stoked about the idea of doing a solo show again, because I had such a therapeutic and positive experience with the first one. Performing can be a very healing medium, and the writing process also allows for processing of feelings and emotions in a healthy way. Most Achieved Person is a comedy at heart, but definitely touches on heavier themes that directly reflect my life experiences in the past two years.
Why is a solo show the ideal way to tell this story?
A solo show is so challenging, especially when you’re a group project kind of person like me. I value working with teams and having everyone contribute their own strengths to a project. When you do a solo show, you’re forced to rely on only yourself to get your story across. It allows for a much more raw and personal story to be told.
What are your artistic influences for this show?
Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the incredible creator of Fleabag, has been a major source of inspiration for this show. Fleabag started as a solo show and ultimately became a wildly successful TV show. I watched the TV show first, and then when I decided I wanted to try and do a solo show last year, I watched her solo show as well. Both are fantastic and absolute must watches! I appreciate her willingness to not only make her characters flawed, but keep them flawed, with little to no growth. It’s a bold choice, but it feels relatable. Most Achieved Person is a lot more optimistic, to be fair.
What surprised you during the creation of this piece?
I am still writing it, so maybe I am surprised by my procrastination 😉
Is there anything audiences should know about you or your piece before they attend? And/or is there anything else you want to share about your piece?
I am a comedian first and foremost, and I want everyone to be able to laugh. Please come ready to laugh! Even during the “sadder” or heavier parts, there is truly comedy in everything.
Tansu Philip (MOST ACHIEVED PERSON) is a queer, Indian-American actor/writer based in Los Angeles. Her solo show PARATHA premiered at PlayGround Solo Fest 2023 and has won awards!