EDITOR’S NOTES
CARLY MILROY
bEAU FITZPATRICK
Edinburgh Edition
As far as comedy performance hubs go, it's no understatement that the annual Edinburgh Fringe Festival is an absolute nucleus of frenzied comedic activity. The sheer size and scope of the festival, attracting artists from the world over like flies to a spotlight, is monumental. Since its establishment in 1947, the percentage of comedy show registrations has steadily increased to its current standing at just under 40% of the festival's theatrical offerings. Globally, inspiring and emerging comedians, producers, technicians, writers, and an almost unfathomable number of comedy punters have daydreamed about making the August trip. Some even manage to get there. A festival of such proportions, then, is sure to inspire a list of meaty questions from performers deciding when to take the plunge and register their contribution to the 25-or-so days of chaos! Can you afford it? Is your show ready to compete for audiences in the city's arena? Should you choose to register for the Free Fringe Festival? What is the Free Fringe Festival? Is your act even a 'fringe' act? And where is this Ed-in-burgh? In YAWP's issue 15, we aim to tackle some of these questions. Comedians who have taken the plunge offer advice from their own experiences, including our feature comedian this month: Melbourne's award-winning stand-up, Ronny Chieng. We also look at the history of the festival, explore its structure of operation and name the big wigs who keep its cogs turning, and ask just how much bigger can this thing get…?