The Art of Producing

This is a sponsored article on behalf of Future Artists

As someone that has produced theatre at the Fringe for over a decade, what lessons have you learnt over the years?

For me as a producer, I always tell my artists that the audience comes first. We are creating for them, not ourselves. The Fringe is about the audiences and they do change each year – for example, there are less student audiences out here and the average ticket holder is 40+. I watch documentaries on the Fringe, and see how it was set up to be anti-establishment by students back in the day – I guess the spirit of that is here. So the lesson here is, the Fringe changes, and over a decade of producing, one of my key jobs in to anticipate this change.

As a producer, what do you find special about Tartan Tabletop?

I discovered Tartan Tabletop playing their D&D comedy improv show on the Free Fringe. The entire crew had talent for improv – I thought it was scripted as it was beat perfect comedy and everyone played a role, the dynamic was perfect. I found out later they had a popular podcast, and the Free Fringe was their first outing as a show. That was 2022. I said to them, look if I can work with you, and we can hone this into the perfect 50 minutes, make it interactive, make people feel part of something, like an indie band, then I think we have something. The lesson here is, always nip in for a pint, no matter the time of day, and talent is often found in a backroom somewhere.

What are you hoping this year’s Fringe and the return to Gilded Balloon will bring for Tartan Tabletop? 

Gilded Balloon took a risk with the show last year, I really had to blag it – a D&D comedy? Who would come? And we sold out our run, with audiences coming back three or more times to see the story unfold. We then invested everything we had and went to Australia to the Adelaide Fringe, and again, the show sold out and we got our first real reviews. So this year, the adventures are new, but we have some returning characters. Noblin the Goblin is back and each show they are played by a different guest comedian from the Fringe – so this unknown makes the show a comedy tightrope. If you saw us last year, you will know what we mean!

For tickets head to gildedballoon.co.uk and follow @Tartantabletop on Instagram and Twitter