Direct at the Edinburgh Fringe?

By Chris Harrisson:

Directing a production at Edinburgh is one of the most challenging, exciting and rewarding experiences you can have. It will also be one of the most frustrating, tiring and difficult things you’ll ever do, but you’ll come out of it at the end feeling glad you did it. Members of the company will fall out, some people won’t like your show and you’ll spend at least one evening wondering why in the hell you ever thought it was a good idea, but if you love drama, then it is an opportunity not to be missed. 

Discipline and Punish, the 2008 Edinburgh show, was devised over seven weeks just preceding the festival. We started the day after my final exam and worked for around six hours a day, five days a week, so we were all heavily committed. As the show was devised and based heavily on research, I was working on it extensively into the evenings, either preparing things for the next rehearsal or reading and researching. I wanted to do something genuinely different, and use Edinburgh as an opportunity to learn and develop. Judging on that criteria, the trip was immensely successful. You are putting yourself at the mercy of the critics and the general public, who have no problem telling you if they don’t like something. Luckily, they often tell you how to make something better and you take this advice with you after the festival has finished.

Of course, aside from the show itself, Edinburgh is a brilliant chance to see the best theatre, comedy and dance. At the same time as doing your own thing and getting vital experience from that, you also see some truly inspiring work by other companies, often students or young graduates. Many of the influences I brought to Discipline and Punish are from the previous year’s festival. You are guaranteed to see something that will reinvigorate your decision to do what you’re doing.

Finally, and possibly the most important point, is that the festival is immense fun. You will make some of the best friends you’ll ever have, and have some of the most brilliant experiences too. Edinburgh is not something to undertake lightly. It is often stressful and the planning begins many months before you even start rehearsals. You want your cast to have the best experience that they can and that comes through commitment on your part, which means long hours and expense (claimed back). However, you will not regret it if you do take it on and it’s unlikely that you’ll ever get the chance again to spend £7000 of someone else’s money on a play. Embrace the challenge.