Yawp Mag ISSUE 16: SKETCH COMEDY | Page 9

But after the payment of the performers, venue and props, it in no way compensates the work that we all put into it. Not by a long shot. And, you know, with printing and advertising, yea. It can cost a lot of money’. That seems to be the problem with many producers in the Melbourne comedy scene, or even just a comedy scene in general. Passion will only get you so far. To talk about true sustainability, there needs to be a working wage for the people behind the curtain. ‘But we lasted for just under two years with The Anarchist Guild. And I’m surprised that we did last for that long. Even with us all in each other’s pockets. We were all just really lucky that we got along really well. Which kind of links back with what I was saying before in that you have to get the right people for the job. Get talented people but also, get people that you really want to work with’. The Anarchist Guild is over now. But Nick Caddaye is still directing and producing shows for various talented performers around the scene. With just over 15 years of experience behind him, Caddaye now has a penchant for scouting talent for his next performances. He knows what the pitfalls of potential productions are before they have manifested on stage and based on our interview with him (see full video below) he is a font of knowledge about the way of sketch comedy and how to make good ideas thrive. He sees production and direction as two separate roles, and cringes at the well worn meme of comedians producing, directing, performing, writing and publicising their comedy festival shows all by themselves. He exclaims. ‘Even producing and directing are enough. You need to get a producer for your show so that you can focus on comedy’. It’s a lucky performer who has Caddaye on their team.