Column: Missing the buzz of Edinburgh Festival Fringe ...

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe was due to open on Friday – even bigger than 2019 where 3841 different shows were gearing up for 59,600 performances.

I was producing three shows back then resulting in one with poor sales and two sold out runs.Of those, one failed to break even while the other made a profit which we shared with the actors and crew.

With 2020 it appears that most venues too have no reserves and are holding non-returnable deposits while crowdfunding or asking for donations to survive financially.

Pleasance artistic director, Anthony Alderson, told me the gates will be closed for the first time in 36 years with their 280 shows affected and over 1000 performers.

They depend on ticket sales as a charity and their appeal would in turn donate 30 per cent of the revenue raised back to the artists and performers and by last weekend had raised over £35,000.

He said that the festivals are so important to the communities and is optimistic in the survival and that the bounce back may be greater.

Writer and director, Liam Rudden, pulled all his shows early and now has taken a step back to see Edinburgh in August like it used to be.

No tacky banners, posters and students forcing flyers on you and yet the tourists remain but in smaller numbers.

He struggled to get a photo of the Royal Mile deserted while last year during peak hours there were street cafes, pop up pizza caravans at £7 a slice and three performance stages with a changing programme every half hour on each.

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He told me of the small companies faced with sold out shows but losing money while some of the big organisers have full bars seven days a week out with tickets for shows.

He would like to see a return to fringe theatre with smaller venues and just a few in the cast as at this point the audience numbers are unknown.

Liam reflected on his successful shows of the past such as Princess Pumpalot which ran for nine years, Silence In Court which the audience is the jury, Thief which is a powerful solo show which open at Brighton Festival, played the Fringe and opened on Broadway.

My favourite show of his to date was I Ran With The Gang which was the Alan Longmuir story of how the Bay City Rollers were formed by a plumber in Edinburgh.

Alan appeared in the show too as himself and this attracted fans from across the world to enjoy the musical heritage, contribute to the Q & A and enjoy a selfie with a legend.

So, we miss all this and the ultimate buzz of the opening weekend with showcases, parties, enthusiastic performers, networking, launch events, good hospitality and meeting old friends. 2021 will have a lot to live up to.

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

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Allan Crow, Editor, Fife Free Press