From The Daily Show’s Lily Blumkin comes a hilarious solo show about growing up and getting worse. When packing up her childhood bedroom, Lily introduces us to nine zany characters like a well-meaning dad, a self-indulgent rabbi, and an inanimate clump of hair. After sold-out performances in New York, Nice Try comes to Fringe with an honest look at how we use the past to make sense of our present.

Fresh from sell-out shows in the States, Lily Blumkin brings Nice Try to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

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Would you mind giving us a brief insight into what your show/event/performance is?

I would not mind at all! Nice Try is a solo character comedy written and performed by me, Lily Blumkin. I’m a Brooklyn-based writer and performer on the staff of The Daily Show, and this is my first EVER Fringe experience!

Nice Try is a show about failure. When Lily (me, but like, a heightened version of myself) returns home to pack up her childhood bedroom, she uncovers humiliating memories from her past that contradict the put-together, successful, singular image she currently has of herself. Over the course of nine zany characters, Lily determines how much delusion is necessary when it comes to our own self-perception. After sold-out performances in New York, Nice Try comes to the Edinburgh Fringe for a full run at Gilded Balloon’s Patter House.

Tell us about the creative team and the process involved?

Nice Try was directed in New York by the brilliant writer and actor, Ariel Gitlin. It’s currently directed in Edinburgh by another hilarious and gifted comedian, Lanee’ Sanders. It’s written, performed, and produced by yours truly, and teched by the incredible John Ross.

I’ve been writing characters for about six years now, and in late 2023, I got the idea to compile some of my favorites into a solo show. I went through each character I had written, spent a year rewriting and workshopping them with Ariel. After a few months, I came up with the framing for my show and narrowed my characters down to just the strongest. I started running the full show in early 2025, and now in Edinburgh, Lanee’ and I are tackling the full Fringe experience. We’re planning to keep the show as fresh and lively as possible by making small tweaks along the way. Then, after the festival, I’m planning to run Nice Try again in NYC and travel with the show to a handful of cities in America.

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How does it feel coming to the Fringe?

Thrilling!! I’ve never done anything like this, and I’m super excited to see how my show grows (and how *I* grow as a performer) over the course of the month. My friends who have gone to Fringe in the past rave about how fun and life-changing the whole experience is, and it’s always been a dream of mine to go. And now I am! I couldn’t be more excited. I especially can’t wait to

be surrounded by art and artists for a full month, see hundreds of shows, and meet new people. Hopefully, one of those people is you! Come say hi!

With shows from all over the world at the Fringe, what sets yours apart?

I’m going to wager that no other shows at Fringe feature a talking clump of hair who embodies the manic pixie dream girl stereotype. But guess what? Nice Try does.

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Is there anything specific you’re hoping the audience will take away?

Definitely a flyer and a recommendation to three more friends!

Apart from that, I hope people leave Nice Try with an appreciation for their failures as much as their successes. At the start of the show, my narrator (Lily) has an inflated ego because of some minor accomplishments and major oversights. By the end, she’s come back down to earth, but not so far down that she can only focus on the mistakes she’s made. As a performer, a perfectionist, a woman with clinical anxiety, I constantly have to remind myself to not get carried away by either disappointment or pride. I try to remember that the healthiest thing we creative people can do is be honest and encouraging with ourselves. That was what I sought to do when I was making this show, and what I want viewers to feel when they walk out of the theater.

Your Ideal audience is in attendance, who’s watching? Or more importantly – who isn’t…?

This show is for everyone! In New York, people as young as 18 and as old as 90 saw the show and loved it. It’ll hit especially hard if you’re queer and Jewish (like I am; there will be a few very specific jokes just for you), but even if you’re not, the humour translates across all backgrounds. If you’re a human being who likes to laugh, you’re my ideal audience.

It’s an intense month, so where you’re able, how do you plan to relax, and are there any other shows you intend to see or want to recommend?

I’m hoping to go on a walk every morning. A morning walk always helps me clear my head, and I’ve been told that Edinburgh is THE walking city. I’m also going to see as many shows as I possibly can. I’m excited to check out other New York comics at Gilded (people like Liz Coin and Alice Fishbein) and beyond (Britt Migs, Nick Hornedo, Sophie Zucker) and check out shows I wouldn’t ordinarily see in NYC like circus and street performers! I want to do it all!

In your ideal world, how can we improve the Fringe, performance, and the industry?

This is my first Fringe, so it’s hard to know exactly what can be improved, but I know from my experience so far, it’s incredibly expensive! If there are more grants offered, more assistance from arts communities, and (in a perfect world) cheaper housing options, Fringe would become much more accessible, and who wouldn’t want that.

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