Learn
Comedy in 2 Days at the Edinburgh Fringe 2006 |
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Nationwide comedy club Laughing Horse comedy returns to the
Fringe to present a second year of intensive courses to learn, or improve your stand-up comedy over
two days - and also to give you the opportunity of taking part in an Edinburgh Fringe show. Courses are
led by experienced comedy teachers Kevin McCarron (Comedian, Compere, Comedy promoter and University or
Surrey and comedy tutor) and Jay Sodagar (Comedian, and Comedy School Comedy Tutor) |
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| These courses are suitable
for people with no experience of stand-up, existing new stand-ups who want to brush-up their skills, or
actors and other performers who are interested in developing performance skills, |
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| Courses run over two days at the Weekend, or Midweek during the
Edinburgh Fringe 2006, in a centrally located Edinburgh Venue. Course dates for 2006 are: |
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| Saturday 5th / Sunday 6th August |
| Tuesday 8th / Wednesday 9th August |
| Saturday 12th / Sunday 13th August |
| Tuesday 15th / Wednesday 16th August |
| Saturday 19th / Sunday 20th August |
| Tuesday 22nd / Wednesday 23rd August |
| Friday 25th / Saturday 26th August |
"friendly,
informative and well-structured. A supportive environment allows wannabe stand-ups to develop material
quickly, and the course even offers opportunities to perform on stage... A no-brainer for anyone
interested in the business, and a fun experience for any weekend wonder whose always wanted to know
what it was like behind the mic stand." - Paul Doncaster, graduate of the 2005 courses
About the Course: What is included? |
Participants
in the courses will be asked to bring one A4 page of their comedy ideas, which over the course will be
turned into workable material. The course runs over two mornings, and includes 9 hours of tutoring,
with access to two working Fringe comedy rooms during the mornings and over 50 shows based in the
Laughing Horse Fringe venues for Free every day of the Fringe from Midday to 3am.
The areas studied will be as follows:
Comedians
Talking: What makes a comedian work? How do they work on Stage - what is their attitude?
Learn through watching and discussing experienced stand-up comedians.
Style
of humour: What style suits you as a performer and writer?
Joke
writing Skills: How to Edit material, and pick funny material from ideas and concepts.
Deconstructing
Comedy: What makes a good comedian? What is the form of a Joke? Rule of three, lists, working
forwards and backwards, topics, methods of developing punchlines and routines.
The
history of Comedy: What is 'alternative' comedy, and what are the roots of stand-up comedy.
Take a look at where we fit into things.
Finding
material: How? Where? Exercises to get you thinking and writing funny on subjects you
are passionate about, or subjects that are new to you.
Technical
and general Skills: Microphone technique. Dealing with Hecklers. The business of Comedy -
dealing with comedy clubs and comedy Promoters.
Market
information:. How, practically - to go about getting your act out there. Where can you
perform at the Fringe, or around the UK. Useful contacts.
Preparation
for the first open spot: Included in the course is at least one guaranteed open spots at The
Laughing Horse Comedy Shows, held at Lindsay’s, The Meadow Bar and The Canon's Gait right through
the Fringe, and access to other promoters who will also be running shows that include open mic acts.
The course
will include several sessions performing in front of your fellow students, and the tutor, and all
areas will be achieved through lively, interactive exercises, improvisation and demonstrations.
You will
be able to use two fully set-up comedy rooms for practice in the mornings during the Fringe, and you
will also get the opportunity to meet others of like mind and to do homework, and seeing fringe shows
for free: At Canons Gait, Meadow Bar and Lindsay’s venue will be over 50 shows accessible for
Free, and these include six Comedy club type shows, with a mixture of new and professional acts,
single acts hour Stand-Up shows (including acts such as Steve Day, Marc Lucero, Nik Coppin, Jay
Sodagar, Kevin McCarron, Andrew J. Lederer, Brian Damage and many more), sketch comedy, improvisation
and group shows running from midday to midnight. (Show details will be available on http://www.freefringe.com from late May).
"It's
improved my confidence and the open spot I performed went down really well! And it's pretty cheap too!
If you've got funny bones, you can do no better" - Duncan Hart, graduate of the 2005
courses.
About Your Tutors: Who are they? |
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| Kevin McCarron |
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| Jay Sodagar |
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Kevin
McCarron
Kevin McCarron's started performing in the UK in 1997, and soon
established himself as a regular act on the London and UK comedy Circuit, as well as taking on the role of
resident compere and co-promoter for the Laughing Horse chain of comedy clubs in the UK, France, Spain and
Monaco.
The skills that make Kevin a natural performer have been
developed over a number of years as a comedian, and also through lecturing at the University of Surrey, both
in Stand-up and Performance, and as a Reader in English Literature.
For the past three years Kevin has taught stand-up comedy at
the University of Surrey, and he has also taught a course entitled "The History, Theory and Performance
of Stand-Up comedy". In 2002 he was invited to offer advice to new comedians which was dramatized in a
radio programme called `Starting in Stand-Up’, produced by Felix Gill and Rajan Malhotra (Montreal
Solutions Ltd), and broadcast on radio stations in Great Britain and Canada. It was also commercially released
as a compact disc.
In his role as Reader in English Literature, Kevin is the
leading UK expert in William Golding, and has published books in nineteenth and twentieth-century American
literature, addiction, popular music, adolescent writing and Dystopian and Utopian literature. Since 2001 he
has performed a number of comedy routines after academic 'away days', after academic conferences, at
fund-raising events and social events.
During 2006 Kevin is writing a book on the link between
stand-up performance and teaching, and is also leading a groundbreaking study into integrating the performance
and business skills of of a stand-up comedy performer and that of academic life.
Kevin was also co-ordinator and Tutor on Stand-up courses run
by WebUni for three years, and co-promotes 'The Laughing Horse New Act of the Year', one of the UK's largest
nationwide searches for new comedy talent each year.
As a performer Kevin has performed with many of the big names
on the comedy circuit, and at all levels of venues from large theatres, to small pub rooms. He continues to
perform at all levels of comedy, from the hard work of keeping a new act competition running, to compering
shows with the likes of Mark Thomas and Rob Newman.
Kevin has written and performed in four different one-man hour
shows: "Gagging for It", "A Joke to Far", "Just Joking" and
"Jestation", and has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe every year since 2000. In 2005 Kevin
brought "Nuclear War: Followed by the total extermination of every living organism on the
planet" to the Edinburgh Fringe, a unique improvised stand-up show made up entirely of suggestions from
the audience (of which the title was one) - providing a different show of stand-up every night of the run.
This show will return to the Fringe in 2006 for a two-week run at Canon's Gait.
| "Brilliantly
Quick Witted" - Time Out Comics Choice |
| "Great
Comedy" - Evening Standard |
| "Top
London Comic" - Liberty Radio |
Jay Sodagar
Jay Sodagar is a leading UK Asian comedian, who has been
performing in the UK since 1998, and can be seen regularly at Jongleurs comedy clubs across the country, as
well as at numerous other venues including the Comedy Store, Comedy Cafe and many others.
Since 2004 Jay has taught comedy at the Hastings adult
education Forum, leading students of all standards to becoming successfull stand-up comedians with a programme
similar to that of the About Comedy Courses.
Jay has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in his own show 'Life
ain't Hard' in 2003, and in partnership with Jewish comedienne Juliet Meyers in 2004 in '4.2 Tolerance"
and returns in 2006 with the sequel to 'Life ain't hard' for a three week run at Canon's Gait.
| "A very slick performer" Edinburgh Evening News |
| "Challenging and extremely funny" - Evening Standard |
| "Induces Belly Laughter" - The List |
| “What comedy night would be complete without the talents and rapier-like wit of Jay
Sodagar?" - The BBC |
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About Booking: How to Book |
Prices
Normal Price: £89 |
If you book before the 8th of June - £10
discount: £79 |
If you book before the 8th of May - £20
discount: £69 |
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Student Price (ID required): £10
off all above prices. |
For all dates and prices, if you book for two places at the same
time, you will receive a 50% discount on the second place.
How to book
Click on the buttons next to the dates you wish to book tickets
for below to order these tickets online via ticketweb
From June 8th you will also be able to book via the Edinburgh
Fringe Box Office, and www.edfringe.com
Further information
For any further information, please contact us at: info@aboutcomedy.co.uk - or call 07796 171 190 |
