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Three: That's the Magic Number.


Today’s show was one of the most fun of the run, despite only having three people in the audience, which serves to reiterate you can never predict how a gig on the Fringe will be.

Yesterday, I had about ten people in (and a reviewer) but got the impression they felt intimidated by what they perceived to be a small turnout, yet today, the three punters present were laughing enthusiastically throughout and often joining in. It was a breeze to do as their response gave me an extra energy kick that probably wouldn’t have surfaced if they hadn’t been so keen, which was the opposite of what I’d expected before the show began.

This morning, I’d checked sales to discover I had no-one booked (the only time this has happened since my two cancelled previews at the beginning of the run) so I left for the venue unsure if I’d even be doing a show. Then, a few minutes before kick-off, two women arrived and sat together on one side of the room, which left me anticipating another ‘crick in the neck performance’ until a guy walked in alone and sat on the other side with seconds to space. Even with the extra attendee, I still gave my techie Michael a roll of the eyes and steeled myself for what I assumed would be a difficult gig.

Spin forward an hour and I left The Caves elated by how enjoyable the show had been. I got back to my digs to find a couple of tweets from the women saying what a good time they’d had, which was a lovely gesture, as I don’t tend to get a lot of Twitter feedback (despite giving my account a little plug at the end of every gig).

I’m glad the show was fun as circumstances this morning could have been a little frustrating without it. Before leaving my digs to set up, I received a text from Glyn to say he'd spotted a post on my listing on the EdFringe website suggesting I’d won an award; I had a quick look (before entering the Land of No Phone Reception that is my venue) to see the statement, “Congratulations! You’ve won the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality.”

I decided not to overreact until I’d had the chance to look into it properly after the show. Even Glyn’s text was tentative, saying he wasn't sure if it was genuine, but it might be worth checking with my PR (Glyn knows things are never this simple when it comes to us).

After the show, I found the following post on the Facebook page of the person who orchestrates the awards:


Strong words, but I agree with what an unpleasant a thing it was to do. I’m glad I didn't get too excited about it, but at least today’s show was a good consolation prize.
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