Latest news with #LittleSquirt
Scotsman
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Festivals diary: Baby Reindeer producer on why performers should put on shows in the smallest venue possible
Industry figures gathered at Shedinburgh to hear from a panel of veteran producers Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... A panel event at Shedinburgh this week offered a raw and honest insight into producing a show at the Fringe from four of the festival's top practitioners. Chaired by Baby Reindeer and Fleabag producer Francesca Moody, the panel also included Raw Materials co-founder Gillian Garrity, Australian producer Linda Catalano and James Seabright of Seabright Live. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It was one of those industry events not specifically aimed at media (don't worry, they knew I was there, I wasn't in disguise) and it almost felt intrusive, listening to the veterans share a brutally honest account of their early experiences with the room of mainly young performers and producers. Ms Catalano admitted she had had to take out a mortgage on her house to pay for certain Fringe shows which had not performed as well as she had hoped, while Ms Moody also said she had borrowed cash from her siblings in the early days, which she had had to pay back over two years. Billed as 'How to Make a Fringe Hit', the panellists discussed pros and cons of marketing, flyering and the 'gut feeling' when choosing a new show to bring to the Fringe. One tip stood out: 'Put your show on in the smallest venue you can afford to put it on in,' said Mr Seabright, with Ms Moody stepping in to explain that a 'sell-out show', no matter how small the venue, attracts attention. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Selling out your show is probably the best way of making people come to your show,' she said. 'People are obsessed with coming to see anything that is on the sell-out board'. Modestly, Ms Catalano did not comment on this one, having, perhaps inevitably, experienced a sell-out for one of her shows, on at the Traverse, called I'm Ready to Talk Now - which has only one audience member in each performance. Perhaps the sweetest thing to come out of the event, however, was Ms Catalano's admission that the entire cast and crew of another of her shows, Little Squirt, get together for a Sunday roast together every week on their day off. 'We choose a different pub each week,' she explained. 'Each team needs something different. Some teams need there to be a day in the week where they don't see each other at all. This one needs a Sunday roast.' Pickled Republic Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Moldovan-born-now-based-in-Glasgow theatre maker Ruxy Cantir's show, Pickled Republic, has also been a sell out in her first ever run at the Fringe. I managed to scrounge a last minute ticket, pleading my love for anything Romanian and Moldovan - they essentially speak the same language, I could elaborate further if anyone was interested - and pickles. The show, part of the Made in Scotland showcase, saw Ruxy play a cabaret singing potato, a mime artist gherkin, a socially anxious onion who wanted to be a performance poet and a loving mother breastfeeding her carrot son. 'You've been fully Fringed,' said a friend when I described what I'd been to see. Autopsy Award winner Ruxy Cantir brings 'Pickled Republic' to Summerhall this August But my favourite bit was when Ruxy addressed the audience at the end, pointing to the dozen or so tomatoes she had squashed onto a table cloth in one of the final segments. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Look at our TikTok to see what we do with the tomatoes after the show,' she told everyone. 'We make them into soup!' The most wonderfully Moldovan thing I have ever heard. Other festivals are available The Fringe is so all-encompassing, it is sometimes easy to forget that there are other festivals going on around the city. The Edinburgh International Film Festival kicks off on Thursday, while the Edinburgh International Book Festival is now in full swing, with queues out the door of the signing tent for Chinese writer Liu Zhenyun when I popped by on Tuesday afternoon.
Edinburgh Reporter
10-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Reporter
Fringe 2025 – Little Squirt goes for a dip at Portobello
On Sunday morning Aussie rising star Darby James, at the Fringe with his award-winning nautical themed one-person musical Little Squirt, joined the Portobello-based Edinburgh Blue Balls, a men's mental health and cold water swimming group for a sunny sea swim. The Edinburgh Blue Balls is a weekly men's mental health and cold water dipping group located in Portobello, Edinburgh. Founded in 2021 by Marc Millar, the group is designed to be a supportive, social space and place of belonging for men of all ages and backgrounds. Following a successful international debut at Edinburgh Fringe in 2024, Darby James returns to the Fringe with his critically acclaimed heartfelt, feelgood musical cabaret 'Little Squirt' exploring sperm donation and queer parenthood. Super catchy tunes with heft, performed by a total gem of the Aussie performance scene. Performing at Gilded Balloon Appleton Tower until 24th August. PHOTO Steve Ullathorne PHOTO Steve Ullathorne PHOTO Steve Ullathorne Like this: Like Related
Scotsman
31-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Now is great time to see shows before big hits start selling out
Darby James in Little Squirt (Picture: Lucinda Goodwin) Today is our big Press Launch at Gilded Balloon which marks the start of a very exciting time for Katy, myself and our team. With the first day of Fringe previews already under our belts, now is a great time to see shows at lower prices and support the performers by coming to see shows in the first few days before the big hits of the Festival start selling out. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... At our Press Launch tonight, we have a wonderful live showcase from across our programme with media, guests and performers all invited to come and have a catch up before the opening weekend. One of our fantastic performers, Darby James, of award-winning show Little Squirt, has written us a special song to celebrate Gilded Balloon's 40th anniversary. Darby performs a one-man musical show which has won multiple awards in Australia, and he's gone through our history to pick out the highs and lows of 40 years of the Gilded Balloon in song and some lyrics describing my personal history! Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Caroline Rhea will be hosting our Press Launch show and promises to have everyone in hysterics throughout. Sadly, Caroline is not able to stay for as long as we had hoped as she is rushing back to Hollywood to perform in a new CBS television show. We also have the inimitable Rosie O'Donnell kicking off her limited run from tomorrow – one of the biggest names at the Festival – as she heads over to Edinburgh from her new home in Ireland. We're looking forward to welcoming Rosie to Edinburgh and hoping we'll be able to show her some of the sights while she's here! It's wonderful to welcome back so many people that we only ever see this time of year, including our seasonal staff who work so hard to make sure our venues are ready to greet customers and artists. Every year, we're lucky to have photographer to the stars Steve Ullathorne at Gilded Balloon for a few weeks. You can see an exhibition of Steve's best photos from across the comedy world in our concourse on Appleton Tower – featuring beautiful portraits of acts like Miriam Margolyes, Sue Perkins, Alan Davies and more. As well as preview prices, we also have our annual charity day coming up on Wednesday, August 6. To support our charity partner Waverley Care, we discount thousands of tickets to only £5 with a portion of each ticket sold going to the charity. It's a great day to come out and see shows across our programme with plenty of big names, new comics, magic, theatre and family shows with a limited number of £5 tickets available. Welcome everyone to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the biggest and best arts festival in the world!
