Sydney-based, multi-award-winning artist and self-confessed screen addict, Charlotte Otton (creator of Feminah, 30-Day Free Trial, and Let Me Finish), is back in Perth with her latest solo show, I Watched Someone Die on TikTok. This darkly comedic exploration dives headfirst into the bizarre digital hellscape of online content, raising unsettling questions about our consumption habits and the algorithms that shape them. A graduate of WAAPA’s unique Bachelor of Performing Arts (BPA), Charlotte sat down to discuss her upcoming Fringe World performance.
Tell me about the show! What can audiences expect to be seeing?
I Watched Someone Die on TikTok examines the world of dark digital content and my own uneasy relationship with it. It’s deeply personal, grappling with why I’m drawn to the morbid and how my algorithm seems to know me better than I know myself. It’s also about the broader implications of these digital ecosystems: why does a safe body seek danger online? Ultimately, it’s a comedy at heart, and though audiences have said it left them both terrified and nauseous— it’s always in the comedy that I am exploring.
How did the idea for this show come about?
This show was originally inspired by a huge depressive bout after moving to Sydney in 2022. My mental and emotional bandwidth low, I downloaded TikTok to bring some much needed amusement and connection into my life. However, my always learning, perpetually predicting, ever appeasing algorithm picked up on my IRL depression, drip feeding it back to me digitally. Turning my depressive bout into a serious downward spiral (scawy).
It all came to a head when I watched a video of a 5-year-old-girl dying on my way to my shitty warehouse job. As I hopped off the train crying at Central station at 7am, I couldn’t help but think “could I turn this into contemporary art?”. And if not art, then at least 60-minutes of theatrical content. If the machine could learn from my experiences then surely I could too.
I became infatuated with how death and doom was positioned in the metaverse. Sandwiched between shopping hauls and dance challenges. It was a great starting off point to where the show ultimately is now.
I Watched Someone Die on TikTok at Melbourne Fringe season at La Mama HQ. Photography by Darren Gill.
What’s it like creating and performing a solo show?
I love solo work—probably because I’m a bit of a control freak. Having my hands in every pot and the final say is deeply satisfying. But I don’t do it alone and I’ve collaborated with incredible artists in Sydney, Melbourne and now Perth who’ve helped bring this show to life. This show truly couldn’t happen without the collaboration that built it.
With so many pots to juggle—writer, performer, producer- how do you navigate these titles and diversity of skills required?
I consider myself a theatre maker. While I’m an actor, my career has been built so far on making my own work, which allows me to showcase my skills on my terms. By not being pigeonholed into one role or one title you get to understand the whole gambit of what it takes to create which is such a beast and takes a million people.
You’re returning to Perth, a city sometimes called isolated but also with a clear appetite for new work. What’s it like performing here?
Perth’s hunger for fresh, original work is unmatched. WAAPA’s BPA program fosters such individuality, and platforms like The Blue Room Theatre and Fringe World provide amazing opportunities for artists. I truly cut my teeth in Perth, and its tight-knit artistic community shaped who I am today. There’s something beautiful about the way established, mid-career, and emerging artists share knowledge and collaborate—a strength in Perth’s smallness that I don’t think I’ve found elsewhere.
I Watched Someone Die on TikTok at Melbourne Fringe season at La Mama HQ. Photography by Darren Gill.
Your show’s title and theme suggest technology plays a central role. What can audiences expect in terms of form and style?
Absolutely, technology is at the forefront. The show mirrors TikTok’s staccato rhythm, blending performance art, sketch, and cabaret into a chaotic, engaging mix. The digital nature of the show means it evolves every time I perform it. I constantly update the content to keep it relevant and punchy, and to reflect the super-fast pace of the content and the change online. It’s challenging but incredibly rewarding. My work is always autobiographical, treading that line between comedy and discomfort. The show is for the people like me who love theatre but who might have a short attention span thanks to screens…unfortunately I need to be constantly entertained and hopefully this show provides that.
I Watched Someone Die on TikTok will be performed at the State Theatre Centre of WA (Rehearsal Room 1) for Fringe World Festival from January 21 to 25, 2025.