I’ve never written a Bucket List, but if i had, then i would be currently crossing an experience off it with great pleasure.
I have returned from my first ever appearance at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
While the show was met with mixed sentiment and was not as successful or well attended as i’d hoped, it was by no means a failure (not by Ed fringe standards!) and was an amazing experience.
I was performing my first ever solo show, a piece i’d based on a short story i wrote back in 2007. I did pitch it as a storytelling piece, as it’s not a ‘play’ as such, but still, there was a debate from reviewers as to whether it worked as a theatre piece. That being sad, most of the audiences i spoke to really loved it, were moved and touched by it.
One viewer was moved enough to write me a personal email
“…two productions that stood out superbly against all the rest; and yours was one of them.
A beautifully crafted piece. Superbly written. Wonderfully performed, and marvelously staged. My only negative thought was, that at the end I was left feeling rather sad that it was over.
… I would not hesitate to book for anything you may write in the future, and if again you are also performing it, then I would count myself twice blessed”
I have never met this person and was so genuinely moved by this response. The experience would have been worth the effort, time and money i’d put in, but this was the thing that absolutely justified it.
The venue was amazing – a little underground vault, built in the basement of a church and the stage was framed by an arch and we projected onto the bare white back wall. It was such a great space for it! The venue staff were super awesome (and probably made up half my audience to be honest, but they all loved it, so it’s all good) and really friendly and i’m really sad that by the time Sunday nights rolled around John and I were too exhausted to go out with them! We had every intention of joining the venue drinks night, but we were just buggered!
BECAUSE! we saw so many shows!! Adam Hills, Ali McGregor, Lady Sings it Better, Scales of the Unexpected, Piff the Magic Dragon, Fascinating Aida, Sammy J and Randy, Nina Conti, Hannah Gadsby, DeAnne Smith, Dead Cat Bounce, Axis of Awesome, Gilbert and Sullivan in Brief, Des Bishop, Baby Wants Candy, Josie Long, Bec Hill, The Economist, Comic Strip, The Thinking Drinkers Guide to Alcohol, Carl-Einer Häckner, Terror on Presley Beach (an Adorbs show mostly by highschoolers) some improv shows (of dubious quality) and some new comic talent in my friend’s DeadBadger duo. Not as many shows as last time, but still, but the end of it i was absolutely showed-out. honestly. the last day John and I just sat on the couch until it was cocktail time!
Me Schmoozing with the lovely Ali McGregor
Speaking of Cocktails – who knew Edinburgh was a hive of brilliant bartending skills for a very reasonable price! On Saturday, John and I discovered a wonderful bar, sort of by accident, called Treacle on Broughton Street (as much for my reference as to tell you all to GO THERE). There they had a 4 page cocktail menu, with Finlandia as their house vodka (to speak to the quality) with all sorts of great rums, vodkas, gins and liquers. I started with the Sherbet Martini, MADE WITH ACTUAL SHERBET!
It’s garnished with a LOLLIPOP you guys!
The next on the list was the Rose and Lavender Crusta
omg, what it is? an UNINSTAGRAMMED PHOTO! of a really yummy cocktail!
Aaaand after that i was too busy drinking to take photos, though i did have a Silver Fern (42Below Kiwi, St Germain and mojito-y flavours and my favourite for the night), a Raspberry and Pear Mojito, A Beach Bum Grog and an Antoine 42. John had a Violet and Pear something, a mandarin smash, something that tasted like marmalade, a few other things here and there and a Zombie. Now the zombie has about 10 ingredients, 8 of which are alcoholic and is topped with a lime half, squeezed out, filled with rum and set alight… And we still managed to walk home!
Revolution was the other place we discovered, which much to our delight is a chain across the UK so we can continue our sampling of the many infused vodkas here in London!
Yesterday was our last day so we did do a few touristy things, including Hollyrood palace, but i didn’t take a lot of scenery photos this time round. Two reasons, firstly I was busy and while i did take note of the beautiful land and city scapes often, I wasn’t doing a lot of touristy things or stopping to get my camera out. Secondly, I have photos of a lot of Edinburgh from 2009!
still, here are some for your viewing pleasure
The Forecourt of Hollyrood Palace
John was trying very hard to ruin this photo… luckily he failed 🙂
The View across the Meadows, walking back to our apartment
Before I'm Too Old 