So, last time we spoke I was standing on a dirt road in the middle of outback Australia heading to the airport after my gig (see last blog for more details!). Mr Barry Morgan (yep...the one and only Barry Morgan of Barry Morgan's World of Organs) picked my up in his Toyota Crown Royal Salon.
En route to Melbourne International Airport I realised I had 85kgs of planks, buckets, ladders, biscuits, rolls of paper, but only 23kg of check in luggage and no music for the show! Luckily the amazing John Thorn was busily creating his magic and with the helpful addition of today's technology, the music arrived before we did!
Barry and I made it in plenty of time, and thankfully QANTAS were so nice about the 85kgs I volunteered to entertain their check-in line. Let's hope BA are equally as generous!
36hrs hours later we arrived! Ahhhhh Edinburgh you are always so beautiful when I get here. I hit town two days before my first preview. Despite the fact I had already taken 85kgs worth of props with me, I still had around 300kgs to source and build...approximately.
The wood I needed I could only get from a hardware store in Hermiston Gait. So I caught a cab out to pick it up and the cabby was so lovely that he assured me it would fit in the cab for the return journey to Bristo Square. However, it stuck out the cab's window by about a foot, so no go!
Fortunately there was a man with a van parked right beside, watching us trying to shove this 2.5m piece of wood into a black cab. He said, 'Give me a tenna and I'll drive you in". I said, 'just gorgeous' and we were on our way.
FINALLY SHOWTIME! The first show I was very nervous, but in a good way. The kind of way that it keeps you on your toes or my case, makes you fall over them!
The space was a new space to me and in Edinburgh it's not like you get to rehearse in your space before you perform. But, if there is anything that can benefit my show, it's an obstacle. And boy, were there some obstacles in this show. I had the most spontaneous and fulfilling show straight up and it was such a nice way to kick things off!
It reminded me of how much I love being on stage and how much I'm lost in the moment of being in the world that is created for people to watch and be apart of.
KAPUT - Edinburgh Fringe Festival @ 15.05 Underbelly.