In our ongoing Edinburgh Fringe 2026 interview series, we are speaking to artists and creatives who are bringing their shows to the Scottish capital this summer.
In this interview, we speak with Arden Fitzroy to discuss their show, CVNTCLAVE
What can you tell me about your show?
CVNTCLAVE is a one-Cardinal-show exploring power, faith, hypocrisy, and how much tea can go in that cup before it runneth over.
CVNTCLAVE is a one-Cardinal-show exploring power, faith, hypocrisy, and how much tea can go in that cup before it runneth over.
A conclave is a spiritual gathering, wherein Cardinals are all locked up in the Vatican together to elect the next Pope from among their number. It is a time of sacred contemplation. It isn’t a war.
All the fighting has to be invisible. Obviously.
All the fighting has to be invisible. Obviously.
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| Photo by Azeem Mustafa |
Before a conclave, each Cardinal must receive the sacrament of confession. Enter the confessional with one of these Princes of the Church: Cardinal Cvntvs, who wouldn’t dream of plotting to take down his competitors – he claims to be uninterested in becoming Pope. As he reflects on his own life choices, it turns out that he just so happens to have receipts on everyone - and it seems the Vatican of Cvntvs is an endless repository of salacious queer drama, petty squabbles, and psychosexual, above-tepid rivalries.
You don’t need to have seen Conclave - but you do need to love messy queer divas.
How would you describe the style of your show to anyone who has never seen you before?
Queer chaos, a lot of cvntiness, a lot of cattiness, and every colour as long as it’s red.
You don’t need to have seen Conclave - but you do need to love messy queer divas.
How would you describe the style of your show to anyone who has never seen you before?
Queer chaos, a lot of cvntiness, a lot of cattiness, and every colour as long as it’s red.
The story is told through Cardinal Cvntvs, who makes full use of irony, humour, and misdirection. The things he says are at times sensational, and he often appears larger-than-life. But there’s no camp without something serious at its core.
My work tends to be very heavily researched through a combination of diverse sources, and CVNTCLAVE is no exception. Some of that research comes through in some of the most unhinged moments - because nothing is wilder than real life, especially when it comes to the Vatican.
Also, if you get the slightest suspicion that something may be a Mean Girls reference, it is.
What was the lightbulb moment that led to the creation of this piece?
I’d watched Conclave and was immediately enchanted by the idea of the whole process: a messy competition (but you can’t call it that) where everyone is in the running to represent the divine. Also, in terms of the film, it was structurally very relatable as a queer person - in terms of modality, conduct, and aesthetic, it was very in line with many queer subcultures.
I’d watched Conclave and was immediately enchanted by the idea of the whole process: a messy competition (but you can’t call it that) where everyone is in the running to represent the divine. Also, in terms of the film, it was structurally very relatable as a queer person - in terms of modality, conduct, and aesthetic, it was very in line with many queer subcultures.
This led me to research conclaves and Vatican politics, both historical and contemporary, and inasmuch as information is available, the lives of queer people in the church. Some of my leads came through interactions I had with people, fandom, and following links to books and papers found in the bibliographies of meta posts and fanfiction.
There were a couple of lightbulb moments: I’d been joking around on Instagram, saying that my ‘pope name’ would be Cvntvs. This was the beginning of the character. This made me think more about queer parallels: after all, the story of someone’s elevation to pope is a story of becoming.
The real lightbulb, per the queer experience, was a brunch with Megan Brewer, director. I was trying to get Megan to understand why I was suddenly so obsessed with all these themes relating to the Vatican. I’m sure my monologue over eggs Benedict (ahem) was bewildering and very normal-sounding. The words ‘this should be a show’ were, once again, fatefully uttered. The rest is history.
What makes 2026 the perfect year for this specific story or performance?
I think the release of the film Conclave (2024) and the actual conclave (2025) that elected Pope Leo shortly thereafter has stoked renewed interest in what’s going on in the Vatican. So it follows that there must be a CVNTCLAVE (2026). The current Pope is, as we speak, doing the 6-7 hand gesture, joking about competing with Bad Bunny for audiences, beefing with Trump, and quoting Gandalf in his anti-AI encyclical. Honestly, if he’d like to see the show, he’s welcome. I’d even offer a comp. (But not to the whole entourage.)
What makes 2026 the perfect year for this specific story or performance?
I think the release of the film Conclave (2024) and the actual conclave (2025) that elected Pope Leo shortly thereafter has stoked renewed interest in what’s going on in the Vatican. So it follows that there must be a CVNTCLAVE (2026). The current Pope is, as we speak, doing the 6-7 hand gesture, joking about competing with Bad Bunny for audiences, beefing with Trump, and quoting Gandalf in his anti-AI encyclical. Honestly, if he’d like to see the show, he’s welcome. I’d even offer a comp. (But not to the whole entourage.)
More seriously, we are in a strange cultural moment where deeply-rooted ideas we have about the nature of progress, democratic power, and the individual are all up in the air. The post-war consensus, which is all that most of us know in the West, is arguably all but gone. LGBTQIA+ and women’s rights worldwide are ebbing after years where it seemed that things may be improving. The proliferation of AI looms over the entire economy, especially in the creative industries.
CVNTCLAVE engages with the difficulty of this moment. It’s fundamentally a show about an election, in a time and place where being authentically yourself as a queer person, speaking out while being visible, and participating in public life has an imposed, heightened political dimension. Does the march of time always take us forward?
How will you mentally and physically prepare for a run at the Fringe?
I’m enjoying time with friends, art in all its forms, and community - online and off. I’m grateful that I get to do what I love, even when it’s stressful - this goes especially for all the parts that audiences don’t see, the spreadsheets, the long days, the last-minute adjustments and crises! Connecting to the thought of sharing the show on the scale allowed by the Fringe, potentially brightening people’s days with it, and getting to meet people because of it - that’s so motivational.
I’m enjoying time with friends, art in all its forms, and community - online and off. I’m grateful that I get to do what I love, even when it’s stressful - this goes especially for all the parts that audiences don’t see, the spreadsheets, the long days, the last-minute adjustments and crises! Connecting to the thought of sharing the show on the scale allowed by the Fringe, potentially brightening people’s days with it, and getting to meet people because of it - that’s so motivational.
When all else fails, I find that staring at myself in the mirror whispering, ‘You’re a manager. Manage.’ tends to be helpful.
If you couldn’t use a flyer to attract audiences, what ridiculous object would you hand out to people to get them into your show?
A prayer card with a blessing from Cardinal Cvntvs.
A prayer card with a blessing from Cardinal Cvntvs.
What is the one item in your Fringe Survival Kit that you can’t live without this month?
Honestly, at least 1 (one) Swiss Guard for support. Don’t leave the house without one.
What would you deem as success at the end of the Fringe?
Getting elected Pope of Edinburgh Fringe. It’s a lifelong role. Who knows what might happen!
(I do. But that would be a show spoiler.)
Getting elected Pope of Edinburgh Fringe. It’s a lifelong role. Who knows what might happen!
(I do. But that would be a show spoiler.)
Other than your own show, are there any other shows you would recommend at the Fringe this year?
SO many! One of my favourite parts of being an artist is getting to know so many brilliant, talented people, and getting to support them along the way.
SO many! One of my favourite parts of being an artist is getting to know so many brilliant, talented people, and getting to support them along the way.
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but I’m looking forward to seeing:
-Monks, by Annie Luján and Veronica Hortigüela - hilariously, this is on right before CVNTCLAVE at the Lime Studio, so you could go for what would possibly be the most deranged Catholic-inspired double-feature of all time and catch us both in the same evening!
-Nuns!, by Dog Complex Theatre
-UNDERGROUND MONK SHOW, by Soho Theatre
-The Wolf of Poyais, by Blue Bar
-Pink Rabbit, by Farah Ashraf
-Jellyfish, by Blah Blah Productions
-SUCCUBUS, by Georgina Collins
-Hater, by Brava Guava
-Parasocial Activity, by Gallus and Silly Mission Productions
-Aquarius Rising, by Ben Fallaci
-One Man Poe, by Threedumb Theatre - they’ve got two shows on this year, which is exciting
-Mohan: A Partition Story and Kanpur: 1857, by Niall Moorjani
-Linus Karp Was Hit With An Umbrella, by Awkward Productions
I reckon that’s plenty to get on with! If I missed anyone, mea maxima culpa.
What is one Edinburgh spot that you would recommend people to visit when they're not watching performances?
If you want to go on a nice walk, St Margaret‘s Loch. If you need a greater escape, I’d run for the Pentland Hills - don’t actually run there, take a bus.
Can you describe the show in 5 words?
Cvnty, queer, funny, serious, unhinged
What keeps you inspired?
Art, transformation, community, and queer fandom culture. I’m fascinated by the way things work, and what the conversation around any such thing reveals.
What would you hope someone takes away from seeing the show?
I’d hope that people would come away reflecting on our shared humanity, and the importance of looking after each other.
I’d hope that people would come away reflecting on our shared humanity, and the importance of looking after each other.
But also, I’d hope that they simply had a good time, or that they found something in or around it interesting enough that they’d want to look it up further - that’s how I interact with things I enjoy. And I’d love for them to come back to catch certain things in more detail, or a different light.
Finally, I won’t give anything away, but one of my proudest inventions is a certain Challenge that Cardinal Cvntvs mentions. I would love for that to be part of my artistic legacy, I can’t lie.
When and where can people see the show?
CVNTCLAVE, Greenside @ George Street (Lime Studio), 7-29 August (not 16, 23), 20:45 (60 mins)
Tickets are available from
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