We recently connected with Kendall Davis and have shared our conversation below.

Kendall, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

This year I started working on my first one-woman show, ‘Euphonia.’ In the show I portray Tallulah Tinsel, a forgotten chorus girl in a waning vaudeville revue – who was once considered a prodigy for her skill as a euphonium player.

I played the euphonium (a low brass instrument) for five years. I did not enjoy my time as a euphonium player in band. I wasn’t good at it, I didn’t care about getting better at it, and I hated the way I was treated as one of the only girls in the low brass section. I quit band when I was 15 and didn’t touch a euphonium again until this year.

When I started playing around with ideas for a one-woman show, I wanted to write something silly and fictional, but with elements of myself in it. As soon as using a euphonium for the show popped into my head I was obsessed with the idea and began crafting the show around a euphonium. Though at this point, I did not own a euphonium (which are quite pricey). I scoured eBay for a deal and the perfect horn, listed at $45 and ‘for parts only,’ finally found me.

Being able to incorporate the euphonium into this project has allowed me, in a weird way, to revisit my relationship with my time in band and my younger self (even though the show has little-to-nothing to do with my actual lived experiences). I’m creating new positive associations with the euphonium – acting like a complete fool and making a mess onstage.

I’ve also always considered myself a writer first, performer second. Being alone onstage for an entire show has forced me to reconsider the way I think about myself and my strengths as a writer/performer.

I’m still in the early stages of developing and performing ‘Euphonia,’ but it has already become the most meaningful project I’ve worked on.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a NYC-based writer and comedian, originally from Fort Smith, Arkansas.

When I was seven I would write skits and act them out to anyone and also no one in my cul-de-sac. When I was eight I started performing in community theatre productions, but continued freelancing as a writer, writing scripts that I would make my family act out and record on my DigitalBlue Camera. In middle school, I transitioned from performing in community theatre to running tech (puberty-induced shyness I guess).

In 2020, I moved to New York and decided to finally give real-life writing and performing a fair shot. I started taking classes, going to open mics, and joined a sketch comedy troupe. I was instantly in love with all of it.

Since then, I have been lucky enough to perform all around NYC, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the Boom Chicago Comedy Festival in Amsterdam, LA Skins Fest, and various shows around the East Coast and LA.

I co-produce and co-host several shows in New York, including Hot Mic Comedy, Comedian Traitors, and Discount Disco.

In 2023 I was selected as a fellow in the 8th Annual Native American Media Alliance TV Writers Lab and subsequently received Netflix’s Native American Writer Accelerator Grant. I am currently in early development on ‘Meet the Redskins,’ a half-hour comedy that I co-wrote about a nepo-baby Councilwoman and her quirky community in a pre-contact Cherokee village.

My standup is often dark but always goofy. My stage and screen writing are riddled with physical comedy, props made from reclaimed garbage, and too much fake blood.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I think the most rewarding part is the community that comes with it. From collaborating with other creatives and getting to see other artists’ work, to the trust and connection with audiences during performances. I think the human connection that is required for creative work is the best thing in the entire world.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I went to school for biology, got my degree, and then decided I didn’t want a job in biology. Straight out of college I moved to DC to work in education equity – first pivot.

After three years in DC, my husband and I decided to move to New York for a change of scenery – second pivot. I got a great full-time job in education equity in the city. However, I quickly realized that I wasn’t fulfilled creatively and just being *near* art wasn’t going to be enough to feel satiated. So two weeks into the job, I up and quit with no notice – third pivot.

I started working as a freelance content writer, writing the stupidest most mindless articles you can imagine, while pursing a career as a comedian. It was the best, most reckless decision I ever made.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @hahakendalldavis

Image Credits

Antonio Gilbreath
Kat Soriano
Noah Friend
Michael Gebhardt