Riki Lindhome on Developing Dead Inside ahead of Soho Theatre Run

Actor and comedian Riki Lindhome brings her solo show Dead Inside to Soho Theatre following its Edinburgh Fringe debut — a darkly funny, musically driven exploration of a decade-long journey through fertility treatment, loss and eventual motherhood. The show navigates the clinical, emotional and often absurd realities of trying to have a child when nothing goes to plan.In this interview, Lindhome discusses shaping personal experience into performance, why music became central to the storytelling, and how live theatre creates a space for conversations audiences often aren’t having elsewhere.

Can you tell us a bit about the show?  

Dead Inside is a comedy show about my experience trying to have a baby when it didn’t go according to plan. It combines stand-up, storytelling, and original songs to explore that journey in a way that’s both funny and honest.

At its core, it's a show about wanting something deeply and navigating all the unexpected turns along the way.

Dead Inside began at the Edinburgh Fringe before transferring to Soho Theatre - how has the show evolved since its debut, and what does it feel like to bring it to London?

Edinburgh was really about discovery. I was performing the show every day and learning, in real time, what was connecting and what wasn’t. That process helped me understand the structure, the pacing, and the tone of the piece.

Since then, I’ve been refining it - tightening the writing, clarifying the storytelling, and rebuilding a lot of the technical elements like music, projections, and transitions so everything feels more cohesive and intentional.

Bringing it to London feels like the next step in that process. Each run helps clarify the show, so it’s exciting to continue developing it in a new space.

You've chosen to tell this story through music and comedy rather than straight drama. What does the musical format allow you to explore that other forms couldn't?

Music allows you to express things that might feel too direct or too vulnerable if you just said them out loud. It creates a different emotional entry point for the audience.

For this particular story, which moves between clinical, emotional, and sometimes absurd experiences, having multiple forms - comedy, narrative, and music - felt like the most honest way to tell it.

Infertility is still rarely depicted honestly on stage. What responsibility did you feel as a writer and performer in bringing that experience to an audience?

I felt a responsibility to be honest about my experience, but also to recognize that it’s just one version of a very complex and varied journey.

The goal wasn’t to represent everything, but to share something real in a way that people could connect to. If it helps someone feel a little less alone, that feels meaningful.

You wear multiple hats as writer, performer and songwriter on this show. How did you approach the creative process of pulling all of those elements together?

It was definitely a layered process. I didn’t start with a finished concept. I would write a joke, or a song, or a story based on something I was experiencing, and then over time I began to see how those pieces could fit together.

Once I had enough material, the focus shifted to structure and how to shape it into a cohesive piece. That meant thinking about pacing, emotional arc, transitions, and how the different elements - comedy, music, visuals - interact with each other.

It also meant stepping back and looking at the show as a whole, how the tone shifts, how the audience experiences it from beginning to end.

Has any particular reaction to the show stayed with you?

There was one couple that got divorced after they the show. It wasn't a direct result of it, but seeing the show lead them to conversations they hadn't been having. Once they did, they realized how differently they felt about having children. 

You've worked across film, television and music throughout your career. What does live performance give you that other mediums don't?

There’s an immediacy to live performance that you don’t get anywhere else. You’re sharing a space with an audience and building something together in real time. You can feel when something lands, and you can feel when it doesn’t, and that feedback loop is immediate. 

There’s also a level of connection that feels very direct, especially with a show like this, where it’s just me on stage. That experience is very different from film or television.

Riki Lindholme will be performing Dead Inside at Soho Theatre from 31^st March – 18^th April. Tickets available HERE.