Thriving Thursday.


Today’s show was a world of difference to yesterday’s, with a lovely reaction from beginning to end, which was very heartening.

This was helped in no small way by the presence of fellow Hitchin-ites Adam and Charlotte Astill in the audience, along with a group of their friends who, for whatever reason, were suitably relaxed to just enjoy the show for what it is, without questioning the audience size or the subject matter. It was also assisted by everyone sitting towards the front in one bank, rather than being spread disparately around the room to accentuate the low numbers.

Once again, I find myself considering the psychology of comedy and why things sometimes work so perfectly to fall flat the next day. There have been times, for example, when my little playlet at the top of the show where I act out what it's like waiting to be seen at Stevenage’s Mental Health Unit grabs people from the beginning and they laugh all the way through - like today - and yet occasionally, the room just doesn’t go with it (though the end tends to get a laugh irrespective).

One of the biggest issues, I think, is purely numbers; if it was a busy house and everyone was familiar with what I do and - dare I say it - there was a little hype around the show, I’m sure people would go with it; stick it in The Pleasance at a good time (or in a better slot at Just the Tonic) and it would work a lot better. Sadly, so much of the industry is based around fickleness and unless you have the right people on your side you sink without a trace.

It’s like seeing The Guardian list the 'Best Shows at the Fringe' the other day; while I don’t begrudge anyone being mentioned in these things, they can never truly be representative when so many productions are never seen by those casting judgment; at least the Comedy Awards put their money where their mouth is and watch everything that falls within their remit.

All you can do is keep reminding yourself why you’re doing what you’re do and where your work fits within your own story. I’m personally proud of this year’s show compared to what I’ve done previously, and am pleased I tackled bigger themes in it. One thing I will take from today was Adam saying how much he thought I’d grown compared to last year's show, which was lovely as I know he really enjoyed that too; proof that, for all the people who regard what you do with confusion, there are others out there who really get it.

In other news, I'm now on an a-board.

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