‘I have to be at Edinburgh because everyone else is there’. But what if you weren’t?
By choosing to be there en masse, are performers, funders and industry bodies perpetuating some of the ‘evils’ of the Edinburgh Fringe? Matthew Linley sees benefits in using other showcases for new work.
I’ve been thinking about @edfringe a lot recently – not least cos its August and I’m not there pounding the streets and trying to catch as many shows as is feasibly possible in a day.
I love #edfringe.
I’ve had so many great times up there in so many different guises – not least as a producer with shows including Nina a story about me and Nina Simone (2017), Chicken (2015), I heart Peterborough. In fact my career effectively started when as a twenty-something I foolishly decided I could make a success of turning a masonic lodge into a fringe venue. But that’s another story for another day!
Whats been bugging me though in this current Edinburgh free void is that I – and in reality the theatre industry – have year on year perpetuated the myth of @edfringe . In recent years the true costs of the fringe for artists, the often difficult (near impossible) conditions and the mental health impacts have all been openly talked and written about.
The reality of #covid19 is heralding fresh thinking from venues and the @edfringe itself – the festivals (not just the fringe) are looking to build back better. But maybe this enforced break might help us press pause on our annual pilgramage North... Keep reading on Matthew Linley’s Blog
I’ve been thinking about @edfringe a lot recently – not least cos its August and I’m not there pounding the streets and trying to catch as many shows as is feasibly possible in a day.
I love #edfringe.
I’ve had so many great times up there in so many different guises – not least as a producer with shows including Nina a story about me and Nina Simone (2017), Chicken (2015), I heart Peterborough. In fact my career effectively started when as a twenty-something I foolishly decided I could make a success of turning a masonic lodge into a fringe venue. But that’s another story for another day!
Whats been bugging me though in this current Edinburgh free void is that I – and in reality the theatre industry – have year on year perpetuated the myth of @edfringe . In recent years the true costs of the fringe for artists, the often difficult (near impossible) conditions and the mental health impacts have all been openly talked and written about.
The reality of #covid19 is heralding fresh thinking from venues and the @edfringe itself – the festivals (not just the fringe) are looking to build back better. But maybe this enforced break might help us press pause on our annual pilgramage North... Keep reading on Matthew Linley’s Blog