Penultimate Performance

Today we completed our second-to-last show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The time's disappeared and our show is hopefully making the impact we intended it to.

We had our biggest reaction from our audience today, with a couple of girls really connecting with our work and seeming to have minor breakdowns in front of us. Speaking to them afterwards, they were moved so much that they were desperate to make a difference.

Seeing these reactions - whilst being somewhat harrowing for us - is exactly why we came here, so we are very much pleased that our message is being heard.

We are also collecting a number of these reactions on tape so we have a permanent record of what people are saying, which we are posting up on our Facebook and YouTube. And at some point soon, we should have a trailer of the show, as we are recording our performances as well.

Tomorrow is our last day, so we're going to throw everything at it, and return home triumphant.

Audience Reactions

In the face of a barrage of bleary-eyed and emotional audience members, we thought we'd start recording some reactions to brag about the show.

Below are a couple of videos, filmed on Saturday and Monday, respectively.

Thank you so much to the guys who agreed to go on camera to advocate our show, and for spreading the word for us, helping us bring in bigger audiences every day.



Five more performances to go, let's see if we can go out with a bang.

Street Show

Our audiences are growing, but our promotion is relentless. Onto our second box of flyers and our posters are rapidly depleting.

We have also had our first street show, in which we attempt to convey something of the drama involved in Chaos By Design into a 20-minute slot on a busy high street.

Emmanuel did a great job rallying up some atmosphere and creating a buzz around our stage, and as we flyered the gathering crowds, I hope that our message got across;

'COME TO OUR SHOW. 4:50 EVERY DAY OTHER THAN SUNDAYS. THE SPACE ON THE MILE. COME TO OUR SHOW!'

Photos from Melissa Farrington:

Photoshoot

We have had a day away from the venue today, so notes have been exchanged and a few more final creases have been ironed out. In our time off, we shot ourselves some photographs just to give us something for reviewers and journalists to use, as well as giving us some more visuals to use on our social media.

We had booked a photographer to come, but in the radio silence from that arrangement we did a few photos ourselves. I think they've turned out quite well:

Back on it tomorrow, we should be getting some reviewers through the doors soon as Benedict and Raynar spent hours queueing yesterday to get our voices heard. From what I've been told, they did a pretty good job of it, too.

Show 1: Bury Metro Christian Centre

28th July 2013, 14:00: the first time the team behind Chaos by Design all meet.

                       19:30: the first time Chaos by Design show completes a run-through.

Last night, at the Bury Metro Christian Centre, Chaos by Design completed its first-ever, full run through. And just to rack up the nerves one bit more, we were yet to finish a dress rehearsal when 18:30 came and went and the opening music faded up to introduce the first scene. 

What's more, Benedict and Raynar were up into the early hours yesterday morning tweaking and finalising the script, leaving themselves and Emmanuel mere hours to learn their lines.

But what would theatre be without the manic, last-minute insecurities and worries? Be it the genuine drama of our under-rehearsed minds, or the wonderfully dramatic waves of thunder which periodically echoed through Bury at poignant moments, (or it could have been the talent on-stage that night), our message seemed to hit home.

Now our team is finally together, we are ironing out the creases and looking forward to our first Fringe show this Friday. One last day in Manchester before we make Scotland our home for the next few weeks.

A huge thank you to everyone at the Bury Metro Christian Centre for turning out last night and helping us raise an incredible £500, and to Ya Freddy Wanga for opening the show for us.

Flyers & Street Shows

Our team is beginning to come together in Manchester for our pre-Edinburgh warm up show, I'm scrabbling around in the back of cupboards to find the last few props, and the BBC Weather website is receiving extra hits every hour or so as I continually check the Edinburgh forecast, hoping the incessant rain it's predicting might transform into something a little more flip-flop-friendly.

In more specific news: the flyer designs are now complete, ready to be handed to hundreds of complete strangers over the next few weeks.

Click for full resolution

We have also secured ourselves a number of street performance dates. On the 6th, 9th, 10th, 12th, 13th, and 14th, we will be gathering crowds on the Royal Mile. If you're dodging manic flyerers and see us making examples of ourselves, please stop by and watch.

Once again, thanks to Jo Painter for her work on the flyers. They're about to be spread over the streets of Edinburgh.

Finalising Flyer Design

Jo has developed the sketches further to give us a far more dramatic image, the addition of Charlotte and Emmanuel's characters gives it context and the backdrop really gives that dramatic atmosphere.

Also, it took me a few viewings to notice the map of Africa on Angelique's torso.

Click for full resolution

With the design almost complete and the rush to find the rest of our props, time's beginning to get very short. But what's a show without a last minute rush to make us all lose our minds?

10 days until our first Edinburgh show. Can't wait.

Thanks again to Jo Painter for her work on the flyers, more of her work can be found on her tumblr.

Flyer Design Sketches

With our travel and accommodation plans being finalised, it's time to begin the online, social media barrage.

First off is the development of our flyers;

Jo Painter is working on these, and we have a couple of sketches to from early in the design process.

Click for full resolution

Click for full resolution

See Jo's Blog at: jp-designs.tumblr.com/