The Extreme Staycation

Location: London, UK  COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak Lockdown Ah Edinburgh . This is the time of year when traditionally many thousands of people migrate north for the month of August. I've performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe three times and been as a visitor several more times. Each experience was quite different - all fun, all stressful at some point and all good learning curves. My first time was with a cast of 8, we had a great flat, I drank quite a lot and made friends who I am still in touch with to this day. Second time was with my solo show, " Awake " - nice flat, even further out from the centre than the first time, had an amazing number of supportive friends and family who came up to see the show and enjoy the festival, didn't drink a drop. Third time was with a revolving cast of about 20, slept like sardines for a month, had a hit show, drank a lot of coffee. Edinburgh - I raise a glass to you and to all the people who were intending to be there thi...

Location: London, UK COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak Lockdown Learning Lines part 1 This is an occupational hazard for actors and one that people not in "the biz" often ask about - "How did you learn all those lines?" they marvel. And honestly sometimes I don't know. If something is well written, it is definitely easier to learn.  Believe it or not, Shakespeare is relatively easy to commit to memory for this very reason - it flows. The biggest thing I've ever had to learn was something I wrote myself.  In 2017 I took my solo show "Awake" to the Edinburgh and Sydney Fringe festivals.  It was 45 solid minutes of me talking.  That's a lot of lines.  And it was particuarly irritating when I got any lines wrong because I'd written them! If you'd like to read about my adventures, I wrote a couple of blogs about them:  Awake: Part 1 - The Road to Edinburgh   Awake: Part 2 - The North and the South

Location: London, UK COVID-19 / Coronavirus Outbreak Lockdown April Fools Day! Yeah, maybe not so much this year. Sad but inevitable news today was that the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2020 has been cancelled. Having been up as a performer and as a producer/performer I know that even at this point, 4 months before the fringe starts, that a huge amount of work, time and money would have already gone into preparing for the adventure. But it was the sensible thing to do. Even if the festival went ahead, what would it be like?  Shows wouldn't be able to rehearse (unless it was a solo show) and any fundraising, from a now even more cash-strapped society, could be potentially impossible. What will the Edinburgh Fringe 2021 be like I wonder?  Would C be the biggest section in the EdFringe guide as a multitude of productions' titles feature Coronavirus in the title? Who knows, time will tell. Free Theatre online: https://www.timeout.com/london/news/the-national-...