Spring updates and the chaos of freelancing
It's been a while
Hello and happy springtime to you, wherever you are reading this. I hope you had a good winter. I’ve had a hiatus from writing these Substacks, for which I apologise. The break was unintentional, and came about partly because tech was conspiring against me (my laptop got sick), and partly because I haven’t had much headspace and have been a bit plagued by self doubt of late. The freelance juggle of January and February was chaotic, and running from job to job didn’t leave me with any time for the unpaid creative things (this Substack, the podcast I do with Gemma Arrowsmith) that ordinarily I like to do alongside everything else.
2024 started with a bang (and jazz hands), with myself and Musical Director Duncan Walsh Atkins teaching a Showstopper intensive. The intensive (full of brave and brilliant souls from all over the world) was indeed intense. At the end of each day there was no space in my brain to write or think, full as it was with improvised choruses playing around my mind on an everlasting loop. Since then I’ve been teaching multiple improv courses all over the place. To be totally honest, doing so much improv teaching can be tiring. While it is a privilege it is also a challenge to teach people to be comfortable with uncertainty. It takes a lot of energy to (try to) create a space where people feel safe enough to take risks.
In other news, I’ve been working on my solo show and getting a lot of joy from the process. Even at a quiet gig I come away feeling excited and curious about what I can do better next time. I love the freedom and independence of gigging. Getting a train back to London late at night, I feel like I’m coming home from an adventure, which I am in a way. Despite development of the show going well however, I’ve decided not to take it to Edinburgh this year. I haven’t heard back from the venues I’ve applied to and am unlikely to do so. If I ever get an offer from The Pleasance for my solo show (I’ve applied to The Pleasance for YEARS and perform there in The Pleasance Grand each year) I’ll eat my hat/wig.
I’m a very impatient person. This is why I like improv and solo comedy, because you can get on with it without waiting for boring gatekeepers to give you permission. So the thought of waiting another year to take my show to Edinburgh is frustrating. On the other hand, doing a solo show at the fringe is such a huge endeavour that it’s probably better to wait until all the circumstances are right, rather than going up with the wrong time slot or with a venue that doesn’t quite fit what I need. Also, I feel like there must be another way for one’s work to be seen by audiences and industry, aside from the Edinburgh Fringe. I haven’t figured out what it is yet but there’s got to be another option right? Right?! Riiiiiiight?
Anyway. The initial break from putting stuff out into the world gave me a renewed energy to make videos again (like this one of Liz Truss doing improv) and it’s been good to prioritise doing normal, real-life things too. I’m hoping to do more of the latter this year. When your job is also your passion it’s hard to find time for hobbies/interests/fun, but this year I’m determined to do more things which are non-work related. I’ve filled my Google calendar with colour coded dots. I have red for Showstopper shows, blue for improv teaching, yellow for writing sessions, purple for comedy gigs and green for non-work, ie seeing friends, family, driving lessons (gulp). I’ve already found this really helpful. Looking at the dots over the month it’s possible to see where I’m putting my energy and what I’m investing the most time in. My aim is to add more green dots as the year goes on…
Speaking of the purple dots (comedy gigs), it can be a slog getting these booked in. Being a character comedian is tedious at times: all the self promotion and scavenging for suitable gigs who will have you. It certainly keeps you humble. It doesn’t matter that I have performed improv to thousands of happy punters, I’m not widely known as a character act, which means it sometimes take a bit of convincing to get 5 minutes of unpaid stage time. This is fair enough, and luckily I have had years of rejections and lowering my expectations to equip me to deal with this. But also: yawn. On the plus side, I have done some great gigs, and am looking forward to some more this spring, especially ACMS in March, and my first try-out slot at Comedy 4 Kids in April.
Even more excitingly I’m doing Mach Fest in May! I’ve always wanted to do this festival so am over the moon to go there with a work in progress of my new show. The audiences there are invariably comedy savvy which is a nice prospect, and I’m excited to see some other shows while I’m up there too. If you’re going why not book a ticket to my show? I can guarantee you that it’s the only solo show featuring a character who has swallowed a small girl in a well.
For my next few WIP’s I’m going to keep mixing it up by substituting one or two characters I’ve already tried, for one or two new ones. My director Ben Target described this as “turning the soil.” I like this way of looking at things. The aim is to keep generating new material, discovering new characters and digging for little moments of gold.
Meanwhile the yellow (writing) dots on my calendar are filling up. Lucy Trodd and I are busy working on a project which I’m looking forward to telling you about. The seeds we’ve planted are finally starting to grow and we’re excited for the harvest.
New season, new soil. Let’s get our feet in it.
News
This weekend The London 50-hour Improvathon is taking place at Wilton’s Music Hall. I’ll be improvising through the night, from 9pm Saturday - 7am Sunday. There will be an array of talented improvisers, comedians, actors from far and wide…and Liz Truss may also make an appearance. See you there night owls!